The same is true for happiness. Happiness is essentially being happy with and for others.

The others will give more meaning to our own happiness, just as they give more meaning to our own suffering. The category of suffering There are different kinds of suffering that may be experienced in various degrees. First, there is physical suffering. You can suffer physically from the illness, an injury, a tumor, from the cold and heat, or from fatigue and sleeplessness. Experiencing a stroke, becoming partially paralyzed, losing eyesight, or suffering from multiple sclerosis-these are all difficult crosses to bear. Another kind of suffering is emotional suffering. It may be caused by the death of a loved one, rejection by the peer group, dissatisfaction with a job or lifestyle, or by loneliness. Familial, marital, and mental problems or worries about the past or the future may create deep sufferings that cannot be measured by objective standards lot compared to others problems. Spiritual suffering is the third kind of suffering. It is the feeling we get when it seems that our lives are out of touch with God or that we no longer have faith in him. Its also the kind of suffering we experience when we feel our mortality, or fear that we are damned or great sinners. All these different kinds of suffering vary from person to person. They even vary within a single individual at different circumstances. But all these types of suffering are interrelated and influence one another. Spiritual or emotional suffering is usually an element of each incident of physical suffering we experience. A man who loses his eyesight in an accident will suffer from it emotionally. He feels that he is not accepted by society. He may blame God for his loss and be angry that something so terrible happened to him for no reason. Everyone who suffers does not react in a negative way to his or her fate. Some people give an example of acceptance, courage, and inspiration. George was a sick older man. He had diabetes, and both his legs had been amputated. His eyesight was severely impaired. He loved to talk about his experiences as General Pattons assistant. Although physically disabled, his clear mind could recount history in the making. This once very powerful person had to be fed by nurse; someone had to wipe his chin when he spilled his soup. All that he had left was there in his room several pictures of his family, a watch pinned to this gown, a chair from home strewn with several handmade pillows, and an afghan donated by the veterans of foreign wars. George had

given all his war medals and honors to his nephews when he moved into the nursing home. He said that he enjoyed their visits, but because they lived out of town, they could not come very often. Although he had been through so much, George continued to set goals. His next goal was to get his diabetes under control and visit his nephews home for Christmas . Not one word of complaint came from for Christmas. Not one word of complaint came from his lips. He was making plans to fight his illness in a systematic way and was full of hope and courage. He was an inspiration for the nursing home residents and staff. Many say that sickness and misfortune change peoples personalities, that people become totally different when they endure suffering. Some people who were healthy and happy become angry and negative after a misfortune. Others dont. Joan was an assertive young woman who come became a gentle, caring person after the birth of her handicapped child. It can be true that suffering changes a personality, but the opposite can also be truesickness and suffering sometimes reveal our basic personality, which differs from the mask we are used to wearing. Sometimes we all wear masks to conceal our basic personality from others and also from ourselves. The meaning of unavoidable suffering A general and universal meaning applicable to all kinds of suffering is impossible to formulate. Suffering is always very personal and, therefore, unique. Your suffering cannot be compared with the suffering of another human being because it is very subjective. If each persons suffering is unique, then the meaning of your suffering will be unique too. This meaning relates to the psychology of the suffering person, to the circumstances, the time, and the kind of event which caused it. People who have never suffered or have never been in contract with suffering during childhood and adolescence will have more