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December    5th

THE BENEFITS    OF  SOBERING    THOUGHTS

“Keep   death   and exile   before  your    eyes    each    day,    along   with    everything  that    seems   terrible—by

doing   so, you’ll  never   have    a   base    thought nor will    you have    excessive   desire.”

—EPICTETUS, ENCHIRIDION,     21

olitical winds could change in an instant, depriving you of the most basic freedoms you take for
granted. Or, no matter who you are or how safely you’ve lived your life, there’s someone out there
who would rob and kill you for a couple dollars.
As it’s written in the timeless Epic of Gilgamesh:

“Man    is  snapped off like    a   reed    in  the canebrake!

The comely  young   man,    the pretty  young   woman—

All too soon    in  their   prime   Death   abducts them!”

Death is not the only unexpected interruption we might face—our plans can be dashed to pieces by a
million things. Today might be a bit more pleasant if you ignore those possibilities, but at what cost?