Steady Your Impulses

Steady Your Impulses

Meditation for February 5, 2021

February 5, 2021 7:00 AM

“Don't be bounced around, but submit every impulse to the claims of justice, and protect your clear conviction in every appearance.”

- Marcus Aurelius, Meditations, 4.22

A question to ponder. Is life a roller coaster with highs and lows, or is it more of the road on the plains that we allow the bumps to stretch high and the dips to deepen lower?

Having ridden that roller coaster, I can say, on reflection, that I believe life is the latter. Studying Stoic philosophy would have helped bring some relief for sure.

Conclusion

We can keep life steady and avoid the peaks and valleys. Truth. Logic. Philosophy. The clickity clacking of the roller coaster threatening to send us careening out of control will sound again. Stoicism asks us to work on controlling our impulses. We should be asking Who is in control? How can I navigate and with which ethics?

Think before you act!