I am not suggesting that everything bad that happens to us is sent directly by a knowing hand — cooked up specially for our personal development…What I do mean is that you can use anything — everything — as a wake-up call; you can find a treasure trove of information about yourself and the world in the big trials and the little annoyances of daily life. If you turn around and face yourself in times of loss and pain, you will be given the key to a more truthful — and therefore a more joyful — life.

Elizabeth Lesser, Broken Open : How Difficult times can Help Us Grow