Marcus Aurelius, Meditations 7.20

One thing only troubles me, lest I should do something that the constitution of man does not allow, or in the way which it does not allow, or what it does not allow now.

—Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, Book 7 (tr Long)

It is so easy to become distracted by all sorts of competing expectations, winding this way and that, pulling me in one direction and then another. Everyone seems to have a different set of suggestions about what life should really be about. Go ahead, just have fun. Work hard, so you can make some money. Influence other people, and you can have them eating out of your hand. It can seem a bit confusing.

I may indeed prefer pleasure to pain, wealth to poverty, or strength to weakness. Yet I need to remind myself that none of these things, in and of themselves, really mean anything at all. They are just varying circumstances, changes in the landscape. Whatever I may have to work with, or wherever I find myself placed, I should seek to live well only by the measure of my human nature. Nothing else is necessary, so I need concern myself with nothing else.

Am I doing the right thing, in the right way, and at the right time? The standard I require is to follow virtue, and avoid vice, in all my thoughts and deeds. The rest is merely an accompaniment, because man is made for action that proceeds from understanding what is true, loving what is good, and seeking what is beautiful. I can know this by pulling away all the externals, and looking only at what it means to be human.

Ever since I have been a child, I have loved walks in the woods, the deeper and darker the better. I will sometimes have to pace myself, as I am so eager to see what will be around the next bend or over the next rise.

It is quite easy to get lost, however, and I need to keep track of where I am. Sometimes the path seems to disappear, and I may have to retrace my steps to find it again. Sometimes the path will split, and I will have to make a choice. Finding my way means knowing where I came from, being aware of the landmarks around me, and staying focused on where I am going.

There’s a good reason we will also speak of a path in life, as an expression of a sense of direction and purpose. We may stray to the left or to the right, become distracted and confused by whatever surrounds us, and maybe we even find ourselves going backwards or walking in circles. Sticking to the path means not being discouraged by any of the upsets.

I notice how many of things I worry about the most are hardly of any worry at all. I will fret about what may or may not happen to me, or what other people may or may not do, or even what they may or may not be thinking, when I should commit myself only to the dignity of my own actions.

This is, after all, the only thing I can control, and there is hardly any use in worrying about what is beyond my control.

Written in 10/2007