Does every cloud have a silver lining? Or are plenty of them filled with rain that slickens the highway and jackknifes the tractor-trailer?

There's really no way to answer the question, because what if that tractor-trailer snarls traffic, making the lady 17 cars behind it late for her job interview? And what if that means she doesn't get the gig, and she's so depressed she stops at her favorite bakery, where she runs into her high school boyfriend, recently divorced, who's always carried a torch for her and is about to sell his startup, called Zappos? What I mean is: Do we live in an "all's for the best" world or not?

There's an expression in Hebrew — there's probably an expression in every ancient language — "Gam zu l'tovah," which translates to "Even this (horrible thing) is for the best." Its origins seem traceable to the venerated rabbi named Akiva, who lived a thousand years ago.

And so there's a famous story (well, famous once you start Googling, "gam zu l'tovah") about how Rabbi Akiva went to a town where, as in either all ancient parables or inns, there were no rooms to be had. Unfazed, he camped out in the woods with his donkey, rooster and candle — whereupon a fox ate his rooster, a lion ate the donkey and the wind blew out his candle. Akiva figured this was God's will.

Day dawns and it turns out the entire town had been sacked in the night. Had Akiva's rooster crowed, donkey brayed or candle shone bright, the sackers would have noticed him, too. So — you get the point.

It's a perspective that can be very comforting, this idea that we don't have perspective when misery hits. And when I started asking around for gam zu l'tovah stories, everyone seemed to have one. Laid off twice in eight months, Eileen Roth decided to become her own boss — a professional organizer. Now she's the author of "Organizing for Dummies." My friend Barry left his job after a humiliating pay dispute. He was then hired back as a consultant — for more money. A second year med school student we'll call David was taking the test he needed to pass to be promoted. He'd never failed a test before. He failed that one. Depressed and terrified, he studied hard all summer and not only aced the do-over, he feels he's a more attentive doctor to this day.

And those are just the job stories. Plenty of people are grateful for injuries, missed trains, break-ups. For instance, I am thrilled my husband was dumped by his girlfriend way back when. (I hope he's thrilled, too.)

Could it really be that the best things in life start out as the very worst and we just need to have faith that someday we'll connect the dots?

Well ... no. Certain misfortunes are not gifts in disguise. Pain is not wonderful. Losing a loved one isn't either. Even missing a bus can just be annoying, not enlightening.

Nonetheless, the gam zu l'tovah idea is more psychologically sophisticated than it seems. Being pelted by life's lemons can lead a person to desperation. And that's a psychological state shrinks swear by: the window when a person is so darn down they're willing to try something new.

It's insulting to say that all bad things are really for the best. But it does seem clear that taking action, sometimes out of sheer misery, can change life for the better.

Lenore Skenazy is author of the book and blog, "Free-Range Kids," and a keynote speaker at conferences, companies and schools. Her TV show, "World's Worst Mom" airs on the Discovery Life Channel. To find out more about Lenore Skenazy ([email protected]) and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.