Pain and Joy make us human

The title is part of a text that a friend sent me almost three weeks ago. "Data", a character from the tv series "Star Trek: The Next Generation" was an android who could do anything a human could and better, but what he could not do was feel what it was like to be human. He longed for the chance to be able to feel emotions. Unlike Data, we feel emotions both when we wish to and when we don't.
Like most people in the world I've felt extreme pain and extreme joy and everything in between. I'm reminded that both during pain and joy that "This too shall pass". It's nice to be reminded of that when I'm experiencing pain, but not when I'm experiencing joy. Sometimes we feel one of these emotions from a person we've come into contact with, but the ones closest to us can make us feel both of them, sometimes within a short period of time. I don't fault them for that, if I didn't trust them I would never let them get as so close to me as I have.
Experiencing pain helps me grow as a person if I'm willing to allow it to happen. Having enjoyed the joys that have been a part of my life gives me hope as I work through pain. Pain in life is mandatory, suffering on the other hand is optional. The longer I sit in pain I start to drift ever closer to suffering, and that does me or anybody around me any bit of good. Loss is a part of life, and the pain comes along with it. In my life I've not lost nearly as much as others that I know, but I've lost some and the grieving process goes along with it. It's what I do after that and how I deal with it that makes up a big part of who I am. Six years ago I lost a special person in my life and due to guilt and shame I suffered long after that person was gone. I was a wreck and not fun to be around. Lately I've reached out to those around me and they have helped pick me up and point me in the right direction.
So as I move on with my life I don't regret the things that I've gone through or that I've done, to do so would keep me from enjoying the wonderful things and people that come into my life. It's important for me to remember the things that people bring into my life, no matter how long that lasts, whether it be for only a few short weeks, or many years.