Good as any one person may ever be, each of us will always sink in the weight of our own imperfections. With imperfections come flaws, in these flaws are the roots of mistakes planted. From there, of course, is where the pain and the hurt stems from. This pain affects the lives we live in a plethora of ways. One of these such ways is that our mistakes can and will often hurt someone. Now, of course with that being said, this article is not meant to exhibit just how much pain can be caused by mistakes, or to guilt people into some sort of repentance. I wish to start you off with a strong understanding of the fact that I believe that mistakes and pain are an essential and unavoidable part of our lives. People mess up, they make mistakes, and they do things they regret.

Now with that established, I wish to speak of how people often see this pain and harm caused by mistakes. I'd garner that for the majority of humanity, they see it as a purely bad thing. To be fair, this really is not a horrible assumption. Even basic instincts can establish foundations of good and bad. If something makes us feel pain, physically or emotionally, we typically are going to look at that as a purely bad thing. I am also not here to convince you that bad things are good. Evil never was good.

What I wish to help you understand, if you do not already understand it, is that good can come from hard things. Of course, I am sure you have an understanding of this, that you know of how our trials refine us, they build us up and make us better than we would have been otherwise. If someone didn't suffer from depression, then they wouldn't have quite the appreciation for happiness and emotion that they can. If someone didn't suffer from anxiety, then they wouldn't truly appreciate peace, calmness, and quiet as much as they do. I use personal experiences here, as I suffer from both of these conditions, as I know many others do.

Now, it is often easy in this position, hearing someone tell you about the good of our trials, to become defensive.

"My trials are hard! You wouldn't understand what it is really like to be in my shoes. I can't see the good in this pain. You are just forcing optimism." And you know what, maybe I AM forcing optimism. Maybe I am striving to look at the bright side here. You and I both know that those concerns are valid and that there is truth there, but yet here I stand, as sure in the truth of my claims as I am that the sun shines brightly above me each new day. Goodness can come of our trials in the shape of refining fires. A child does not learn from being coddled and cared for in every single way. They are strengthened as they fall and scrape their knees when they mess up when they struggle. There is no growth in the comfort zone, only nurturing, which is good, yet it does not push us forward.

When you make a mistake, and you feel the pain of that mistake drive you down into the bitterness of guilt, please remember that this can be a moment of clarity, where you can choose to look at the bright side of this blight. When something difficult happens to you, and you are stuck handicapped, or sick, or worse off than you were before, please strive to remember that there is always something to be gained from this hardness. Learn to forgive yourself, learn to accept the pains you face. When you fight against your own struggles and call yourself weak for being unable to be perfect, you simply hold yourself back.

Learn to see the beauty in your pain. Learn to love growth.