There's no escaping from suffering, no matter how hard we try. The only choice we have is what to do with the pain. The world tells us to medicate the pain, with drink or drugs; ignore the pain through the incessant buying of things. We can distract from the pain with the myriad of sins we do to console ourselves. All the while, the pain eats us from the inside. Or we can embrace the pain, "pick up your cross" and follow Him.