What is Sweet Without Bitter?

The title speaks for itself. My sweet is in relation to happiness in life whereas bitter is obviously the pain, the hurt, the scars the downs... It is said that happiness will truely mean something when you've been through hell (d'oh... understandable) but is it worth going through the hassle of getting hurt, swimming in self pity then finally (if not done something silly to oneself yet) picking up n cleaning up before building a HUGE barrier for the next contestant, being more cynical than ever?

The Smart Way
Keep a tight watch on your back and never let yourself get hurt. Only lower your guard when the right one comes along
The Traditional Way
Getting hurt is good, so you'll appreciate things better.

If both is true, then there must be more than one side to ALL situations. Are we simply too blind and self contained to notice?