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December 24th

MEANINGLESS... LIKE A FINE WINE

“You know what wine and liqueur tastes like. It makes no

difference whether a hundred or a thousand bottles pass through

your bladder—you are nothing more than a filter.”

—SENECA, MORAL LETTERS, 77.16

ere we have another contemptuous expression, this time from Seneca,
who, given his reputation for opulence, probably enjoyed a nice drink
from time to time. His point will probably rattle anyone for whom success
and adulthood has turned them into a wine snob (though the logic can be
applied just as easily to foodies, techies, audiophiles, and the like).
As fun and exciting and pleasurable as these pleasures are, it’s worth
putting them in their place. You don’t get a prize at the end of your life for
having consumed more, worked more, spent more, collected more, or
learned more about the various vintages than everyone else. You are just a
conduit, a vessel that temporarily held or interacted with these fancy items.
If you find yourself lusting over them, this meditation might help reduce
their luster just a smidge.