This discussion of Shake' Topalian's article underlines the importance of the empathic listening perspective in all treatment modalities. In this particular instance, therapist and patient shared a common historical past: both their mothers were children during the Armenian Genocide and carried severe psychological scars related to these experiences. The discussion of Topalian's article emphasizes the importance of recognizing individual differences in cases when a common background could obscure important differences in the personalities of the therapeutic dyad.