210822 What I learned in my studies this morning

86000

Plus 400 and no more. 

What to do with now? 

Playing. Reading. Calm. 

Throwing. Catching. Talking. Nice. 

Sitting. Feasting. Done. 

Daily Stoic:

Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff . . . and It’s All Small Stuff.  I need to read it. 

And I need to reread How to Live on Twenty-four Hours a Day, a favorite I try to revisit every year. 

86400 seconds. My daily allotment. Every one I spend on unimportant things is time taken from the things which make a difference: a difference in my life; in the lives of my family; in the life of my community. 

Time to make better choices. 

Today's Meditation:

Daily Shakespeare:

Richard III, Act 5, Scene 4

Today's Poem:

Leaves of Grass, Great are the Myths, 1, cont. 

From Letters from a Stoic by Seneca, Letter LXXVII:

Suicide. We discussed this yesterday.  

In our society, we regard it as an (almost) unmitigated evil.  Even in ancient times, most people looked at it as shameful, sinful, or cowardly. 

The Stoics considered suicide as a natural, if final, option should life became unbearable. 

Death is a natural part of life.  

Your life is governed by reason. 

Your life is your own. 

What you do with it, and when and how you leave it, can be your choice. 

The main character in the anecdote at the beginning was an old man who had a disease which, while not fatal, was going to make his life hell. Rather than waste away and "survive" the pain, he chose to end his own life. He thought about it. He talked with friends and family. He put his affairs in order. He choose a painless way to go.  

If suicide must be an option, that's a good way to do it.

Suicide is not spur of the moment. It's not an accident. It's not something Stoics want or expect us to take lightly.

But it is an option.