Gothic BC

One of the  most basic teachings which you'll find in all three main schools of Buddhism (Theravada, Zen and Tibetan) is the Four Noble Truths.  This was the Buddha's first discourse. 

#1: Life is hard to bear (Dukkha)...we all go through it in this world; humans, animals, formless beings...all of us. 

#2: The reason why life is hard to bear, in part, is because nothing lasts...the world is governed by impermanence (Anicca.) So when things fall apart on us,  we have trouble accepting that.  If we can come to accept impermanence, seeing life how it is, we suffer less.  It doesn't mean that we go around depressed or joyless...we still have to live, and life can be funny and good, as well as unpleasant...but the idea is approaching life, day to day, knowing that things get messed up.  That's just what happens.  It's not always easy to accept when things end or fall apart, though.

#3: The third Noble Truth is that there is a way out.  The way out is acceptance through non-attachment.  Non-attachment doesn't mean that we get rid of anything, or have to make radical changes or anything like that.  It also doesn't mean that we have to abandon everything and go off and become a recluse.  It's a shift in understanding.  You can still live in the world, do what you did...it's just that non-attachment means we simply realise and come to accept that who or what we have in our lives may not be around forever. That's all.

#4: The Fourth Noble Truth is the Buddhist 101 method of  dealing with life.  It's called the Eightfold Path.