Purple ray of hope - Mt. Laguna, CA

“There’s a tendency in us to run away from suffering. There’s a natural tendency in us to seek pleasure and to avoid suffering. We have to instruct our mind that suffering can sometimes be very helpful. We can even speak of the goodness of suffering. Thanks to the suffering, we begin to understand. And because we understand, we can accept, we can love. Without understanding and love there cannot be any happiness. So suffering has to do with happiness. We should not be afraid of suffering. We should be able to hold our suffering and look deeply into it, hold it tenderly and learn from it. We need to know that we can learn from suffering. The goodness of suffering is something real. Without suffering there cannot be happiness. Without mud there cannot be any lotus flowers. So if you know how to suffer, suffering is okay. And the moment you have that attitude, you don’t suffer much anymore. And out of suffering, the lotus flower of happiness can open.”

Thich Nhat Hanh - from his book Reconciliation