Profit and learning

I once heard a statement that went something along the lines of, "Within every criticism, there is a kernel of truth. It is our duty to find this truth and build upon it." Now, it is not my intention to necessarily focus on criticism, constructive or otherwise, but rather the rooting out the kernel of truth. It seems like we often find ourselves in various situations where we consider ourselves fortunate or unfortunate, I know I do, but then I habitually ask myself, Why? I try not to ask this so much with the fortunate situations, but the latter begs it to be asked overwhelmingly more.

Asking Why in an unfortunate situation initially presents itself as a third-party plea for pity, but for some of us, its merely because we're trying to learn from our mistakes - rooting for that kernel of truth that we are to learn from and build upon, and I think it is this mind frame that needs to be striven for more by society. It possess an air of responsibility and ownership that seems to be lacking to a certain extent in today's society, as well as the spirit of progression. Yes, not-so-ideal things happen, some were under our control, others weren't. It is the essence of the advanced human race to progress forward, and that can only occur through learning:

1 : the act or experience of one that learns
2 : knowledge or skill acquired by instruction or study
3 : modification of a behavioral tendency by experience (as exposure to conditioning)

synonyms see knowledge from m-w.com


To learn is to apply knowledge, and what is knowledge but solidified truth....