June 30th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - The Obstacle Is The Way

"While it's true that someone can impede our actions, they can't impede our intentions and our attitudes, which have the power of being conditional and adaptable. For the mind adapts and converts any obstacle to its action into a means of achieving it. That which is an impediment to action is turned to advance action. The obstacle on the path becomes the way."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 5.20

June 29th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - No Excuses

"It is possible to curb your arrogance, to overcome pleasure and pain, to rise above your ambition, and to not be angry with stupid and ungrateful people - yes, even to care for people."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 8.8

June 28th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - No Self-Flagellation Needed

"Philosophy calls for simple living, but not for penance - it's quite possible to be simple without being crude."

~ Seneca, Moral Letters, 5.5

June 27th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Adversity Reveals

"How does it help, my husband, to make misfortune heavier by complaining about it? This is more fit for a king - to seize your adversaries head on. The more precarious his situation, the more imminent his fall from power, the more firmly he should be resolved to stand and fight. It isn't manly to retreat from fortune."

~ Seneca, Oedipus, 80

June 26th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Try The Opposite

"What assistance can we find in the fight against habit? Try the opposite!"

~ Epictetus, Discourses, 1.27.4

June 25th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - The Wise Don't Have "Problems"

"This is why we say that nothing happens to the wise person contrary to their expectations."

~ Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind, 13.3b

June 24th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - The Truly Educated Aren't Quarrelsome

"The beautiful and good person neither fights with anyone nor, as much as they are able, permits others to fight . . . this is the meaning of getting an education - learning what is your own affair and what is not. If a person carries themselves so, where is there any room for fighting?"

~ Epictetus, Discourses, 4.5.1; 7b-8a

June 23rd Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - The Long Way Around

"You could enjoy at this very moment all the things you are praying to reach by taking the long way around - if you'd stop depriving yourself of them."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 12.1

June 22nd Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - The Definition of Insanity

"If you are defeated once and tell yourself you will overcome, but carry on as before, know in the end you'll be so ill and weakened that eventually you won't even notice your mistake and will begin to rationalize your behavior."

~ Epictetus, Discourses, 2.18.31

June 21st Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Take A Walk

"We should take wandering outdoor walks, so that the mind might be nourished and refreshed by the open air and deep breathing."

~ Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind, 17.8

June 20th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Calm Is Contagious

"If then it's not that the things you pursue or avoid are coming at you, but rather that you in a sense are seeking them out, at least try to keep your judgment of them steady, and they too will remain calm and you won't be seen chasing after or fleeing from them."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 11.11

June 19th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Stay Focused On The Present

"Don't let your reflection on the whole sweep of life crush you. Don't fill your mind with all the bad things that might still happen. Stay focused on the present situation and ask yourself why it's so unbearable and can't be survived."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 8.36

June 18th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Prepared And Active

"Let Fate find us prepared and active. Here is the great soul - the one who surrenders to Fate. The opposite is weak and degenerate one, who struggles with and has a poor regard for the order of the world, and seeks to correct the faults of the gods rather than their own."

~ Seneca, Moral Letters, 107.12

June 17th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Offense Or Defense?

"Fortune doesn't have the long reach we suppose, she can only lay siege to those who hold her tight. So, let's step back from her as much as possible."

~ Seneca, Moral Letters, 82.5b-6

June 16th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - No Shame In Needing Help

"Don't be ashamed of needing help. You have a duty to fulfill, just like a soldier on the wall of battle. So what if you are injured and can't climb up without another soldier's help?"

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 7.7

June 15th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Listening Accomplishes More Than Speaking

"To the youngster talking nonsense Zeno said, 'The reason why we have two ears and only one mouth is so we might listen more and talk less.'" 

~ Diogenes Laertius, Lives of Eminent Philosophers, 7.1.23

June 14th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Try The Other Handle

"Every event has two handles - one by which it can be carried, and one by which it can't. If your brother does you wrong, don't grab it by his wronging, because this is the handle incapable of lifting it. Instead, use the other - that he is your brother, that you were raised together, and then you will have hold of the handle that carries."

~ Epictetus, Enchiridion, 43

June 13th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Life Is A Battlefield

"Don't you know life is like a military campaign? One must serve on watch, another in reconnaissance, another on the front line . . . So it is for us - each person's life is a kind of battle, and a long and varied one too. You must keep watch like a soldier, and do everything commanded . . . You have been stationed in a key post, not some lowly place, and not for a short time but for life."

~ Epictetus, Discourses, 3.24.31-36

June 12th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - A Trained Mind Is Better Than Any Script

"In this way you must understand how laughable it is to say, 'Tell me what to do!' What advice could I possibly give? No, a far better request is, 'Train my mind to adapt to any circumstance.' . . . In this way, if circumstances take you off script . . . you won't be desperate for new prompting."

~ Epictetus, Discourses, 2.2.20b-1; 24b-25a

June 11th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Just Don't Make Things Worse

"How much more harmful are the consequences of anger and grief than the circumstances that aroused them in us!"

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 11.18.8

June 10th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - You Can Do It

"If you find something very difficult to achieve yourself, don't imagine it impossible - for anything possible and proper for another person can be achieved as easily by you."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 6.19

June 9th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Solve Problems Early

"There is no vice which lacks a defense, none that at the outset isn't modest and easily intervened - but after this the trouble spreads widely. If you allow it to get started you won't be able to control when it stops. Every emotion is at first weak. Later it rouses itself and gathers strength as it moves along - it's easier to slow it down than to supplant it."

~ Seneca, Moral Letters, 106.2b-3a

June 8th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Brick By Boring Brick

"You must build up your life action by action, and be content if each one achieves its goal as far as possible - and no one can keep you from this. But there will be some external obstacle! Perhaps, but no obstacle to acting with justice, self-control, and wisdom. But what if some other area of my action is thwarted? Well, gladly accept the obstacle for what it is and shift your attention to what is given, and another action will immediately take its place, one that better fits the life you are building."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 8.32

June 7th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Finding the Right Mentors

"We like to say that we don't get to choose our parents, that they were given by chance - yet  we can truly choose whose children we'd like to be."

~ Seneca, On the Brevity of Life, 15.3a

June 6th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - When To Stick And When To Quit

"Think of those who, not by fault of inconsistency but by lack of effort, are too unstable to live as they wish, but only live as they have begun."

~ Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind, 2.6b

June 5th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Blow Your Own Nose

"We cry to God Almighty, how can we escape this agony? Fool, don't you have hands? Or could it be God forgot to give you a pair? Sit and pray your nose doesn't run! Or rather, just wipe your nose and stop seeking a scapegoat."

~ Epictetus, Discourses, 2.16.13

I often fear that Stoicism is rather ableist. I mean, telling people with biochemical mental health issues to "just think differently" is pretty ableist - Stoicism works well for people in peak mental condition, but then, they don't need it. "Did God forget to give you a pair of hands?" Well, a friend of mine was born with only one hand, so yeah, I guess he did. Another close friend was born with only one leg. It happens.

Now, it's not really literally hands Epictetus is talking about, here. He means, "resources you can use to solve your problems," just as "runny noses" isn't the huge life problem here. His point is: "Got a problem? Well, yes, you could just whine about it. But how about taking stock of what resources you have to deal with the problem yourself? And remembering that according to Stoics, it's not even a real problem unless you decide that it is?"

June 4th Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - This Is What We're Here For

"Why then are we offended? Who do we complain? This is what we're here for!"

~ Seneca, On Providence, 5.7b-8

I'm feeling this more than ever. We are here to do the work of human beings, to do the work of humanity. No one said it would be easy. No one said  it would be fair. Why are we offended? Why do we complain? We are not obligated to complete the great work, but we are required to carry it forward and do what we can. Now more than ever that ought to be clear to all!

June 3rd Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - It Is Well To Be Flexible

"He can't be in the military? Let him seek public office. Must he live in the private sector? Let him be a spokesperson. Is he condemned to silence? Let him aid his fellow citizens by silent public witness. Is it dangerous to enter the Forum? Let him display himself, in private homes, at public events and gatherings, as a good associate, a faithful friend, and moderate tablemate. Has he lost the duties of a citizen? Let him exercise those of a human being."

~ Seneca, On Tranquility of Mind, 4.3

June 2nd Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Plato's View

"How beautifully Plato put it. Whenever you want to talk about people, it's best to take a bird's-eye view and see everything all at once - of gatherings, armies, farms, weddings and divorces, births and deaths, noisy courtrooms or silent spaces, every foreign people, holidays, memorials, markets - all blended together and arranged in a pairing of opposites."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 7.48

June 1st Reading from The Daily Stoic (Round 2) - Always Have A Mental Reverse Clause

"Indeed, no one can thwart the purposes of your mind - for they can't be touched by fire, steel, tyranny, slander, or anything."

~ Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 8.41

Happy Kalends of Iunius!