Marcus Aurelius meditations (my thoughts daily)
"Perfection of character is this: to live each day as if it were your last, without frenzy, without apathy, without pretence." Today from book Seven this hit me.
I think so because I've never really thought about defining it.So why is it good to know? Because a person's character is our sculpture and it is inspired influenced over the course of our life.It is the only monument every person can leave to memory.
It is true that to live each day as your last while maybe not defining your character certainly would work to better it.When we are carried by the imaginations of hopes and fears we can obstacle what can be done and achieved.Indeed that next step on the staircase is in taking the step itself.If you truly believed these your last moments despite your hopes and fears you would know what you are and be that alone that is your nature.
Frenzy.To be hurried means we miss things and sometimes it's no one's fault we can just have so much ambition in a day that we miss the mark.So how to avoid this? By trying to keep and manage realistic goals, whilst keeping our optimism and staying free of miserliness.
Apathy.Personally I can struggle with this one the most! Sometimes when our fears take hold or in frenzy we're not moving slow enough taking Ng our time we can become dejected.Now aside from this there is the struggle of genuine depression,which at times is only the consequence of unchecked apathy.When we think about apathy though in its initial state we need to realise that sometimes that last push is the one that breaks the dam.Gratitude also is totally antithetical to apathy so working in a daily practice can be helpful.
Pretence...How easy a little success can go to our heads, but what is it about arrogance that so repulses us from such individuals? Is it an empathetic realisation of how quickly a fall may come to them.knowing we are all human of body mind and soul, having the same nature of mind that for the most part wants to do well.It is no wonder itceeks us when someone turns there nose up to us.We are all partial to it though if we are not are aware of the judgements we make about others.To remedy this we maybe can turn ourselves to love correction and keep in mind how many times we have been wrong or had a change of heart.
