Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word “happiness” would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.
—Carl Gustav Jung—
Life is full of contrasts. What we perceive or feel at this moment is often heightened by an experience we just passed through. It’s the sum and substance of all experiences and all our feelings about them that give meaning to any single moment.
Joy is understood only in a life where discouragement has made its mark. Our lives are recharged, even glorified, by every moving experience, no matter what kind of emotion is evoked. In fact,
our very existence is verified each time an encounter invites an emotional response. When we are sad, it because it satisfies a need to feel that way. If we accept this fact, our acceptance of every emotion grounds our lives in a serenity which embraces and transcends all our feelings.
Whatever I may feel today is cause for celebration. It’s a sign of my vitality.