When we meet with epic heartbreak and failure in the course of our adventures 

we have the opportunity to cultivate the most valuable quality possible on this earth: profound compassion. 

We can realize that our pain is the same pain that most every human being 

meets with in her life. We experience our mortality, our limitations, our flaws 

— and through this we can become incredibly tender and transparent to grace.

In this compassion gained through the wisdom of heartbreak, we begin to perceive that everyone we meet is the star protagonist of their own vast story. 

Suddenly we’re not wandering through a world crowded by meaningless supporting actors and drab extras. Instead we’re intersecting many times each day with the dashing, 

tragic, hilarious main characters of a thousand other fascinating tales.

Carolyn Elliott