S

April 27th

TURN IT INSIDE OUT

“Turn it inside out and see what it is like—what it becomes like

when old, sick, or prostituting itself. How short-lived the praiser

and praised, the one who remembers and the remembered.

Remembered in some corner of these parts, and even there not in

the same way by all, or even by one. And the whole earth is but a

mere speck.”

—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 8.21

toicism is about looking at things from every angle—and certain
situations are easier to understand from different perspectives. In
potentially negative situations, the objective, even superficial gaze might
actually be superior. That view might let us see things clearly without
diving too much into what they might represent or what might have caused
them. In other situations, particularly those that involve something
impressive or praiseworthy, another approach, like that of contemptuous
expressions, is helpful. By examining situations from the inside out, we can
be less daunted by them, less likely to be swayed by them.
Dig into your fear of death or obscurity, and what will you find? Turn
some fancy ceremony inside out and you’ll find—what?