It isn’t the people who’ve had things their own way who – well, who get wisdom. And they haven’t the time to think about what life does to other people, either. But if you’ve been hurt yourself, you can imagine it. You come alive to it. It’s the only use I can ever see that pain has. All that stuff about welcoming suffering because it lifts up the soul is rot. People ought to avoid pain if they can, like disease . . . but if they have to stand it, its best use might be that it makes them kinder. Being kind’s the main thing, isn’t it?’
