There are times in our lives when we are shaken by evil or painful realities that confront us. Those of us who're not living in shielded environments and who expose ourselves to the "real" things of the world soon find that assumptions of security and stability in life are but false notions.

When misfortunes befall us (whether or not it's through our own fault), the fact of human vulnerability abruptly stares us in the face of our souls. We then no longer find that life consists of sugar and spice and everything nice. When misfortunes befall other people, we may perhaps feel a sense of sympathy; but still, they remain far off from us. But when misfortunes confront us, we feel robbed, we feel violated, we feel oppressed.

It's good for the soul. It's good that we're constantly reminded of the fragility of life. It's right that we should place our hopes on things that last and things that aren't vulnerable to human violation. Being confronted by the reality of vulnerability in the present scheme of things does serve to bring our consciousness back to the way our lives should be.

As human persons, we constantly strive for an equilibrium in our existence. The problem is, we seek to create this equilibrium externally, and external equilibriums are volatile since they can be tampered with by forces other than ourselves. Life is about finding a place of equilibrium within, not without. Then we will be able to say, "Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say, 'Even so, it is well with my soul.'"