The Labyrinth

Last night I finished reading Looking for Alaska.
I totally loved it; it was hilarious and heart-breaking and thought provoking... A review will probably appear after I give it a shot on GoodReads and link it back here, but one question was raised in the book that has got me thinking. So, I'm about to get all philosophical on y'all.

"How will I ever get out of this labyrinth of suffering?"

This all depends on your perspective, first off. The way we see life is not a compulsory point of view, but a choice; i.e. whether you focus on the good or the bad is up to you as an individual. Suffering is not the be all and end all of life. As a Christian, I personally believe that difficulties and things that could be described as suffering is not negative. It often turns out to have been a good thing and something positive, although no one thinks that way when it's happening.
But there is something I want to comment on regarding the nature of labyrinths. Mazes and labyrinths are not the same thing and I will explain this. Mazes have a complex system of paths and branching paths, false or otherwise. A labyrinth however has only one path that winds and twists around on itself. A maze must be figured out; you can go down false paths which lead to dead ends or take you back on yourself. You can get lost, search for a long time and still not have an idea where you're going or if you'll ever find your way out. The solution to a labyrinth is to simply keep walking. Keep following that path that winds on and on until eventually you reach the exit.

And so, simply, there you have it. How will you ever get out of the labyrinth of suffering? By putting one foot in front of the other, so to speak. You just keep going, pushing past the obstacles and ignoring distraction because one day, eventually, when you're not expecting to, you'll run straight out of the exit.
And that's the simple truth of it.