I read this quote in Uncle Tom's Cabin (currently reading it in an attempt to meet my 2012 book reading goal of a measly 4 books - which I FAILED to meet in 2011):

Chapter IX: "There are in this world blessed souls, whose sorrows all spring up into joys for others; whose earthly hopes, laid in the grave with many tears, are the seed from which spring eternal healing flowers and balm for the desolate and the distressed."

This quote beautifully and succinctly expresses the change I've noticed in myself in my ability to be happy for others when good things happen, and to empathize with others when bad things happen.

Before all this dead baby shit, I didn't know how to react when tragic things happened to other people. I didn't know what to say, or how to say it. Now, I just have this instinctive response, I can't even describe what it is exactly. But I know how to look at the person, when to listen and when to talk, when to touch them and when to keep my distance. When people are depressed, my reaction is not "get over it, you whiner". It's "yep, been there".

This is why great music is made by angry/depressed people - they know how to relate.