Suffering's great power is that it's an interruption of life.
It reminds you you're not the person you thought you were.
The philologean Paul Celic said: "What suffering does, is: it carves through what you thought was the floor of the basement of your soul, and it carves through that, revealing a cavity below, and carves through that, revealing a cavity below. You realize there are depths of your soul you never anticipated, and only spiritual and relational food will fill those depths."
– David Brooks, "The lies our culture tells us about what matters -- and a better way to live", https://www.ted.com/talks/david_brooks_the_lies_our_culture_tells_us_about_what_matters_and_a_better_way_to_live