Obviously I have never experienced anything even remotely close to the terrible things that happened at Auschwitz, so it struck me as odd that I could relate to the feelings that Frankl invoked. It got me thinking that the way humans deal with suffering remains sort of consistent through different kinds of pain.
Some people may say that because suffering carves a twisting hole in your stomach it is not worth the perspective that it gives you on the world, but I disagree. I think that sometimes, after I have been through an intense emotional pain, I see the world more vibrantly. I feel more. Without feeling pain, I wouldn't be able to gauge how truly happy I can be.
Besides that, I think that suffering increases our empathy. I heard once that truly feeling your own pain is how you get halfway to compassion and that the only way to become truly compassionate is to learn to understand the pain of others.
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