Have your bad past experiences made you a better person?

[caty]

I think all but one has made me stronger--- but one that will always make me ask "what if?".

Bless The Broken Road

I set out on a narrow way, many years ago
Hoping I would find true love, along the broken road
But I got lost a time or two
Wiped my brow and kept pushing through
I couldn't see how every sign, pointed straight to you

Every long lost dream led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars
Pointing me on my way, into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

I think about the years I spent, just passing through
I'd like to have the time I lost, and give it back to you
But you just smile and take my hand
You've been there, you understand
It's all part of a grander plan, that is coming true

Every long lost dream, led me to where you are
Others who broke my heart, they were like northern stars
Pointing me on my way, into your loving arms
This much I know is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you

Now I'm just rolling home
Into my lovers arms
This much I know, is true
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight to you
That God blessed the broken road
That led me straight
to you

[RevCheesehead]

1. Well, I've learned and grown from them.

A better person? I don't know. But they have made me more compassionate, empathetic, patient and forgiving of others.

[Darth_Kitten]

2. Funny, I was actually thinking about this yesterday....

I was thinking everything happens for a reason, even if we don't understand everything (yet), we can at least learn from the bad things that have happened.

If that makes any sense. ;)

[AVulgarianHue]

9. Oh, dear..another quote

from Das Energi by Paul Williams:

Sooner or later a person begins to notice that everything that happens to him is perfect, relates directly to who he is, had to happen, was meant to happen, plays its little role in fulfilling his destiny.

;)

[AVulgarianHue]

3. caty, in a similar vein..

from the IChing, or Book of Changes, quoting Confucius:

Life leads the thoughtful man on a path of many windings.
Now the course is checked, now it runs straight again.
Here winged thoughts may pour freely forth in words,
There the heavy burden of knowledge must be shut away in silence.
But when two people are at one in their inmost hearts,
They shatter even the strength of iron or of bronze.
And when two people understand each other in their inmost hearts,
Their words are sweet and strong, like the fragrance of orchids.

[RetroLounge]

4. Better? No.

But stonger, wiser, more mature, compassionate, loving?

Yes.

RL

[Splatter Phoenix]

5. Mm...Naaaah.

Over a year and a half of an abusive relationship I still haven't broken away from has really fucked up my mind. I doubt I'll ever be able to love or trust or give my heart fully away ever again, after this mindrape.

Ah well.

Maybe SOME people benefit from horrible experiences spiritually, but remember, if you bend something too far, it usually snaps.

[LeftyMom]

6. I don't know that they've made me better, but they've made me who I am.

As I'm fairly comfortable with who I am and where my life is headed, I don't have a lot of regrets.

[In_The_Wind]

7. My bad experiences have changed the way I look at life.

I'm stronger than I realized.

[Wapsie B]

8. No, I'm not to that point yet.

It's all just made me very cynical about a lot of things in life.

[SOteric]

10. 'Better' is subjective. But definitely, they have made me smarter.

Remember, that which does not kill you makes you stranger.

[tjdee]

11. I don't think I'm far enough out the other side yet to say yes.

I've heard that song, and what a delight and comfort it would be to dedicate it or whatever to someone... seems I'm a long way off from that.

[Elidor]

12. Scarred but smarter

My experiences have made me better, but they've also made me worse. I've got a lot of scars to deal with. A lot of anger to unload. A lot of pain I don't even dare to touch, lest I relive it. Emotions from the past are like live electrical wires to me, judging from the metaphors I'm using. Emotional electricity...I like that thought. Experience is a current that amps us up or steps us down.

O, god, I'm sounding philosophical.

[Ellen Forradalom]

13. Better isn't the word

I'm not a better person. I'm more aware of being a flawed person.

[Tallison]

14. As a recovering drug addict

I'm now where I wouldn't wish away my past for anything. I'm more compassionate and better able to help others caught in destructive lifestyles because of my experiences.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

15. I do believe that I am a better, more compassionate, more thoughtful

and loving person.....from my past and current experiences......

I too have scars.....big and deep ones.....and they help me live up to my sig line.....

When I can, that is....



:loveya: :grouphug:

GREAT poem, or lyrics, or whatever you have in your OP.....:thumbsup:

[SarahB]

16. I'm more compassionate than I may have otherwise been.

So yep.

It hasn't always served me well, but I believe it's a pretty decent measure of my humanity.

[Jamastiene]

17. Sadly, no. Confession.

I was once one of those happy go lucky people who forgave easily and grew from my experiences. After the bad experiences started to outweigh the good ones in numbers, I began to think about the effects on me. The truth is I once came up with a way to describe it.

If you have a bucket and all you ever put into that bucket is shit, all you are going to end up with is a bucket of shit.

If one person is the target of hate for most of their lives, they are going to be nothing more than a bucket of hate. I once described myself as a "bucket of hate."

Since finding DU, I feel less like a bucket of hate, but I still have a lot of rage built up against the right wing Christian fundamentalists; sometimes too much for one mind to take. The worst part of it is, I could never tell a psychiatrist or psychologist this face to face, because I live in a red state and they would probably either jail me, sell me out to some anti gay camp like Ex-Gays or Exodus, or put me in the nut house.

I have two plans. Plan A: (My positive plan) get my degree and get the fuck outta here once I have enough education to get work that'll pay enough so that I can afford to stay outta here. Plan B: (My negative plan) lose my mind, live on the streets or become a nutcase people hear about thru breaking news. I just gotta stick to my positive plan. That's my current plan. I'm hoping to forgo my negative plan.

[I Have A Dream]

19. Interestingly, I posted my post below without having read your post.

You are saying the same thing that I am. Please don't give up. If you ARE able to make it through by using your positive plan (and I really hope that you are able to do this), you WILL be stronger. However, you need to get to the point where the onslaught is not happening all of the time. The key is to have respite between these "growth opportunities". I certainly don't wish them on you, but I ask the Universe that you be given the strength to get through them and the opportunity to get out of the situation that causes them to occur unceasingly.

Until then, one thing that might really help you is to just take a minute or two to do nothing except breath slowly & deeply. I find that when I'm in difficult situations, I often breath very shallowly, or I'm actually holding my breath without realizing it.

It sounds to me as though your positive plan is well worth your efforts. My education and the job that I was able to get because of that education are what stopped most of the "bad" things from happening in my life. Good luck, Jamastiene!

[I Have A Dream]

18. Yes, but only because I've basically been a pretty fortunate person.

My childhood was difficult, but I was loved as a child so I was able to use these difficulties to become a better person.

If someone's constantly being bombarded with difficulties, then it's more difficult to benefit from life's challenges. When they're rare, I feel that a person can better use them for growth.