And a woman spoke, saying, "Tell us of Pain."
And he said:
Your pain is the breaking of the shell that
encloses your understanding.
Even as the stone of the fruit must break, that its heart
may stand in the sun, so must you know pain.
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;
And you would accept the seasons of your heart, even
as you have always accepted the seasons that
pass over your fields.
And you would watch with serenity through
the winters of your grief.
Much of your pain is self-chosen.
It is the bitter potion by which the physician within
you heals your sick self.
Therefore trust the physician, and drink his remedy in
silence and tranquillity:
For his hand, though heavy and hard, is guided by
the tender hand of the Unseen,
And the cup he brings, though it burn your lips, has been fashioned of the clay which the Potter has moistened with His own sacred tears.
From The Prophet -- Kahlil Gibran
