MARCUS AURELIUS. MEDITATIONS. Book xii. 5.
REMEMBER that you are an actor in a drama,
of such a kind as the author pleases to make
it. If short, of a short one; if long, of a long one.
If it be his pleasure you should act a poor man, a
cripple, a governor, or a private person, see that
you act it naturally. For this is your business,
to act well the character assigned you; to choose
it, is another's.
EPICTETUS. MANUAL. 17.
The practise of making ourselves uncomfortable from time to time allows us to stretch ourselves. We grow the most when we are away from the familiar. The Stoic practise of "bugging out" allows us to stretch and get back to the basics. Camping and Festivals I see as also allowing us to do this. We get away from the distractions of technology and home comforts and are therefore able to stretch ourselves and renew our spirits and focus.
ReplyDeleteSummary: Familiarize yourself even to those things that you at first despair of.
ReplyDeleteAcquiring the habit of doing the hard things, the things that we find uncomfortable, and most importantly, the things we are afraid of, will strengthen us. It will reduce our fear, our anxiety, and make our equanimity that much more stable.
"Acquiring the habit of doing the hard things, the things that we find uncomfortable, and most importantly, the things we are afraid of"
ReplyDeleteBoy, do I need to internalize that!
I will continue to stretch myself, to step out of our "comfort zones" and keep striving. I not only need to do this with my mental, and social strength but physically as well. Of course, physical exercise must be done sensibly and within reason so that we do not hurt ourselves, but we must continue to push ourselves just that little bit further each day. If we don't push ourselves we will atrophy. Our body will regress further and our minds and personality will become stunted.
ReplyDelete