Quote of the Day – May 12 2012

“Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding… And could you keep your heart in wonder at the daily miracles of your life, your pain would not seem less wondrous than your joy”
― Khalil Gibran

When I was quite a bit younger I had an amazingly wise friend Delores. She told me that she gained her perspective due to the many health crises that she had. One day I was bemoaning my life and all my problems to her. I was having the usual problems relating to my father and deciding what I wanted to do with my life. She listened patiently until I summed it all up with one question.

“Why Me?” Sometimes I believe that question is one of the most common ones that us humans use. What Delores answered floored me.

“Why not you?”

“Huh?”

“Why not you? Why should you be so special that you shouldn’t have your share of problems and difficulties, your share of heartbreaks and pain. That’s what you should be asking.”

I think Delores intuitively understood what Kahlil Gibran was saying here. Pain is part of our lives and to deny it is to deny life’s full experience. Indeed our pain always tells us something. Either a part of our body needs to be attended to or possibly even a part of our attitude or a part of our life. Pain in any of those cases is the best early warning system we have. There are also times when pushing past our pain, accepting it and moving forward brings lessons to us that can’t or won’t come any other way.  I know that very seldom in my life have I learned things the easy way. Friends and I have discussed whether it is possible to learn the big lessons we need in a gentle way and always end up either shelving the question or deciding that somethings are meant to be learned through that great teacher, pain.

Blessings, G

Click on images to see full-size
Blue Marbled Hallway by G A Rosenberg
Glowy Caterpillars eating my Lettuce  by G A Rosenberg

Blue Marble Cathedral by G A Rosenberg