Everyone deserves to be the hero of a novel.
William NicholsonRead
To put it another way, pain is God's megaphone to rouse a deaf world. Why must it be pain? Why can't he rouse us more gently, with violins or laughter? Because the dream from which we must be wakened, is the dream that all is well.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Pain serves as a powerful reminder to awaken us to reality.
This quote suggests that pain has a significant role in human experience, acting as a loud signal from a higher power to awaken us from a false sense of security and complacency. It implies that soft and gentle reminders are often ignored, and thus more intense experiences like pain are necessary to jolt us into awareness of our true circumstances and the importance of living authentically.
Themes
PainAwakeningRealityStruggleLife
In practice
Example use cases
In a motivational speech about overcoming adversity.
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I've seen a lot of patriots and they all died just like anybody else if it hurt bad enough and once they were dead their patriotism was only good for legends; it was bad for their prose and made them write bad poetry. If you are going to be a great patriot i.e. loyal to any existing order of government (not one who wishes to destroy the existing for something better) you want to be killed early if your life and works won't stink.
Ernest HemingwayRead
A man walks on through life - with the external call ringing in his ears but with no response stirring in his heart, and then suddenly, without any warning, the Spirit taps him on the shoulder. What happens? He turns 'round. The word 'repentance' means 'turning 'round.' He repents and believes and is saved.
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Suffering pulls us farther away from other human beings. It builds a wall made of cries and contempt to separate us.
Elie WieselRead
A thousand people drowned in floods in China are news: a solitary child drowned in a pond is tragedy.
Josephine TeyRead