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December 19th

HUMAN SCALE

“Think of the whole universe of matter and how small your share.

Think about the expanse of time and how brief—almost

momentary—the part marked for you. Think of the workings of

fate and how infinitesimal your role.”

—MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 5.24

he amount of matter in the universe is immense—on the order of
trillions of atoms. What percentage of that matter does one human
body constitute?
The earth, as far as science tells us, is some 4.5 billion years old and
shows no sign of ending soon. Our time on the earth, on the other hand, will
be what? Several decades, maybe?
Sometimes we need to have the facts and figures spelled out in front of
us to fully realize the scale at which humans happen to exist in the big
scheme of things.
Consider this the next time you feel self-important, or like everything
rises and falls on what you do next. It doesn’t. You’re just one person
among many, doing your best among many. That’s all you need to do.