From time to time I am asked by the family court system to evaluate a person for the purpose of determining his or her mental and emotional well being. Not a task to be taken lightly, I virtually always augment personal interviews with standardized psychological tests.

One of the scales on the personality test compares the individual's inclination toward depression with the normal population. Obviously, a high score is one that most people do not want to see on their results, but many are surprised to learn that an extremely low score is also not desirable. Most falsely assume that a measurement indicating zero depression is a signal of emotional healthiness.

A very low inclination toward depression shows that a person approaches life with a happy-go-lucky attitude, and more significantly, that they are prone to very shallow thinking. The low score tells me that the person is so intent on keeping things light and pleasant that he or she employs little contemplative thinking.  It suggests that the person works overtime to avoid the pain that is a normal byproduct of humanness.

I suppose in a perfect world there would be no depression and an abundance of laughter and joy, but this is no perfect world. Problems cannot be avoided. Relational breakdowns will happen. People will disappoint, sometimes severely. Plans will collapse. Others'' promises will be broken. Rejection will come from unexpected sources. Personal blunders will recur.

When we feel depressed, we illustrate that we grieve because we are not successfully connected to those around us and that we have a desire for better things. When people virtually never feel down or blue, they show that they are out of touch with the weightier matters of life and that they choose to ignore the unpleasantness surrounding them every day.  Let's just say that a highly non-depressive person is not one who can be counted on to grapple with life's perplexities.

While clinical depression represents pessimism that has become too deeply rooted, a modest amount of depression can be a sign of a hungry spirit. Do you have a dream that has not materialized? It's okay to admit that the loss of that dream leaves you feeling depleted and isolated. Have primary relationships brought disappointment? You are not wrong when you express sorrow over your loss. Are you struggling to cover your basic financial needs? You do not need to apologize when you admit that you are greatly frustrated. Do you have bad habits in your life that leave you feeling like a loser? Your frustration can be the beginning of positive soul searching.

As you grapple with pain and disappointments, you are positioned to relate with others more honestly about life's inevitable flaws. Your depression can cause you to be less judgmental toward others who similarly struggle. It can prompt you to explore patterns of unresolved anger and insecurity. While not fun, depression can generate a longing to come to terms with life's purpose, and it can force you to contemplate the role of spirituality in life's journey.

I spoke with a man years ago who proudly told me that he was lucky because he could not recall a moment when he felt depressed. Indeed he was known as a positive individual with a friendly, infectious personality.  Likewise, though, he was not one who could be trusted to say the right thing when others were in peril. He was a skillful communicator only when life was sunny.

Several years after bragging about the lack of depression, I learned that this man had lost his marriage and it was revealed that he had sexual addiction tendencies. He had sought counseling, and for the first time in his life he found himself in the grip of dark and lonely moods. When he and I spoke about the reversal of events in his life he admitted that the depression was the worst thing that had happened to him and the best thing that had happened to him. "I never liked having to look intently at the garbage that has been buried inside me for years," he admitted. "Spending time in the dumps, though, has taught me that if I continue to ignore the dark side of life, I will never know how to be real or how to grow."

On one hand I was sorry that he had so many troubling issues swirling in his mind, but on the other hand I was glad that for the first time in his life he was peering intently into his soul. In his depression he was learning to ponder meaty matters, and I sensed that he was going to become a much better person because of his low moods.

It's funny how things work, but a bout of depression, properly tended to, can cause an individual to eventually learn what contentment is all about.