We go to yoga classes to find ease. We seek out ways to laugh more, do meaningful work, to blow off steam. We wish every day could be easier for everyone. But anyone who’s been around on this planet long enough has experienced pain in one form or another. Supreme loss, struggle, sadness. Or at the very least we know someone who has and we ask, “Why do terrible things happen to good people?” We question everything in the face of difficulty – our faith, our relationships, our own abilities to generate happiness and abundance.
In my apartment building fire, in my own upbringing, there was a lot of hardship and pain. For many years, I spent a lot of energy being angry and then a lot more energy suppressing that anger in an effort to appear “normal”. The truth is that I needed that suffering, that trauma, to make the most of my time here. The darkness was necessary because it forced me to step into the light.
Last week, The New York Times ran an article entitled “Post-Traumatic Stress’s Surprisingly Positive Flip Side“. Synchronously, Al’s talk at ISHTA last week addressed this idea, too. He commented that we don’t need to let suffering, ours or that of others, discourage us. Suffering leads to transformation. If we were happy with every circumstance, we would have no need to grow. We could just hang out in our current state forever. But what kind of existence is that? This life, on this plane, is about transforming the soul and nothing causes transformation and change as much as discomfort.
In this way, we become grateful for all the crappy things that happen to us and to those we know and love. These circumstances are the Universe’s way of propelling us into becoming the people we are meant to be. That’s a lot to digest and accept. And let’s be clear – it’s really a bummer that we have to suffer to be free, to evolve, to change. I wish there was another way. But the good news is that change is always possible and it’s within our power to bring it into being with our own two hands.
IN BRIEF
Author, journalist, digital product manager, and licensed New York City tour guide. Creator and host of NYC's Secrets and Lies. Alumna of the University of Pennsylvania (BA), the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia (MBA), Arizona State University (Biomimicry), and the University of Cambridge (MSt in Sustainability Leadership).
I build digital media platforms, report on urban climate resilience and biodiversity, and produce live narrative experiences that connect communities to history, nature, and place.
THE DEEP DIVE
My work centers on a single thread: building systems and stories that foster deep connection to our shared world. Across digital streaming, environmental reporting, and live civic storytelling, I design experiences that help people understand complex ideas and the environments around them.
DIGITAL PRODUCT STRATEGY & MEDIA LEADERSHIP
At Carnegie Hall, I serve as Digital Product Manager, leading product strategy, operations, and technical delivery for the video streaming platform Carnegie Hall+. I translate artistic mission into scalable, high-performance streaming architecture that reaches audiences globally. Previously, I led agile product and delivery teams across operations and compliance at American Express, managed Broadway theatrical productions and national tours, and guided strategic initiatives across cultural institutions.
ENVIRONMENTAL JOURNALISM & AUTHORSHIP
As a freelance journalist, I investigate how living systems, urban infrastructure, and human culture intersect. My reported features on urban decarbonization, biodiversity, coastal resilience, and biomimicry appear in publications including Smithsonian Magazine, The Washington Post, Mongabay, Natural History Magazine, and Foreign Policy Magazine. In fiction, I write the Emerson Page young adult novel series, alongside upcoming historical fiction and nonfiction works on New York history, mythology, and human resilience. I also write Togetherhood, a LinkedIn newsletter focused on urban ecology and community restoration, and co-host the podcast Frameworks in the Wild.
LIVE EXPERIENCE & CIVIC STORYTELLING
As a licensed New York City tour guide and live event producer, I transform urban landscapes into shared narrative encounters. I created, produce, and host NYC's Secrets and Lies, an interactive live storytelling series staged across cultural landmarks including the New York Transit Museum, the South Street Seaport Museum, and the historic tall ship Wavertree. I also design and lead site-specific walking tours exploring coastal ecology, food history, and neighborhood evolution, often with partners at Climate Week NYC and the Natural Areas Conservancy.
DOUBLE OR NOTHING MEDIA
Through my independent production studio, Double or Nothing Media, I develop ventures across media, ecology, and public history:
Digital Products & Strategy: Architecting scalable digital platforms, streaming experiences, and operational models for mission-driven institutions.
Environmental Reporting & Publications: Delivering long-form reporting, books, and newsletters grounded in climate resilience and regenerative design.
Site-Specific Live Storytelling: Producing immersive live shows and educational walking tours that engage public audiences in community history.
CONNECT
Website & Production Hub: doubleornothingmedia.com and christaavampato.com
Newsletter: Togetherhood on LinkedIn - linkedin.com/newsletters/togetherhood-7273771832221089792/
Instagram & Threads: @christarosenyc
Emerson Page Novels: emersonpagebook.wordpress.com/
View all posts by Christa Avampato
4 thoughts on “Leap: The Blessing of Suffering”
So true. And, for me, letting the ebb and flow of suffering and non-suffering just be as it is rather than getting caught up and drowning in one or the other has been an ongoing transformation.
Love the NY Times article about post traumatic growth – amen! And I believe that it’s not that bad things happen to good people but rather the trauma can bring out the goodness in people so others say how come bad things happen to such good people. We all have choices about how we respond to life circumstances. I’m so glad you chose the path of lightness. Namaste
Hi Mary – I believe trauma can bring out the goodness as well. It’s hell to go through, and certainly many times it is totally unnecessary. We must do whatever we can to prevent it, but if and when it does happen, we can find solace in making use of its lessons.
So true. And, for me, letting the ebb and flow of suffering and non-suffering just be as it is rather than getting caught up and drowning in one or the other has been an ongoing transformation.
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There’s a great quote that says, “I’m not bothered by life because I don’t mind what happens.” It’s all a learning process!
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Love the NY Times article about post traumatic growth – amen! And I believe that it’s not that bad things happen to good people but rather the trauma can bring out the goodness in people so others say how come bad things happen to such good people. We all have choices about how we respond to life circumstances. I’m so glad you chose the path of lightness. Namaste
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Hi Mary – I believe trauma can bring out the goodness as well. It’s hell to go through, and certainly many times it is totally unnecessary. We must do whatever we can to prevent it, but if and when it does happen, we can find solace in making use of its lessons.
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