Favorable and unfavorable situations are both opportunities to carve out greatness.

【Xian’er says so: “Why doesn’t Shifu praise me?” 】
Xian’er asked Shifu: “When I first became a monk,
You spoke highly of me all the time. Why?
You said that I was good natured with great potential.
And you said that I was bright and kind-hearted,
I was industrious and courageous,
And I will make a great master someday.
Plus that I was much more handsome than Wang Xiaowu.  
Whereas now I have been a monk for years,
You rarely praise me anymore.
You say that I lack virtue and potential,
I am lazy, I eat and sleep too much and I am practically good for nothing.
And you even said that I don’t stand a chance in comparison with Wang Xiaowu.Why ?

Below are quoted from my Shifu’s new book, Say Good Things—Master Xuecheng’s insight on the path to speaking like a Buddha.
As we continue to progress,
Everyone of us will face more and tougher challenges.
Along the way, if there is no ongoing encouragement from those around,
One may not have the drive to carry on.
No one can grow without encouragement and criticism from others.
If one wishes to become an incredibly precious jade,
One must be courageous to embrace every challenge, favorable and unfavorable alike. 

顺境、逆境，都是雕琢

【贤二如是说：师父为什么不夸我】

贤二问师父：为什么我刚出家的时候，
你总是夸我，
说我有善根，说我有悟性，
说我聪慧过人，说我心地善良，
说我勤劳勇敢，
说我将来一定能成为高僧大德，
还说我长的比王小五帅多了。
可是现在出家年头久了，
就再也没听你夸我了，
整天听你说我没善根，没悟性，
贪吃、贪睡、懒惰，一点出息都没有，
还说我长成这样，还好意思跟王小五比。
这是为什么呢？

 以下来自我师父的《好好说话》

随着不断地成长、历练，
每个人都将面对越来越多的、更强劲的挑战。
但是，一路走来，
如果没有周围人的不断激励，
也许不一定会有努力下去的动力。
没有一个人的成长是不需要鼓励与批评的
如果希望自己是一块美轮美奂的宝玉，
就必须敢于并乐于接纳每一个顺逆境遇的雕琢。