Author and philosopher Alan Watts was fascinated at a young age by Eastern spiritual traditions such as Buddhism and Taoism, and carried tenets from them into his writing and public speaking. One of these is the knowledge that being fully alive means accepting both the highs and lows, the pleasure and the pain. Blocking out difficult emotions might soften the blow, but it can also prevent you from fully experiencing joy. Sensitivity is a double-edged sword: When life deals its blows, remember that the capacity to feel deeply will make the good times that much sweeter.