The great remedy which heaven has put in our hands is patience, by which, though we cannot lessen the torments of the body, we can in a great measure preserve the peace of the mind, and shall suffer only the natural and genuine force of an evil, without heightening its acrimony, or prolonging its effects.
–Dr. Samuel Johnson, “Vanity of Stoicism,” in The Rambler #32
And whatever you encounter that is painful or pleasant or popular or unpopular, keep in mind that now is the content, and here right now are the Olympic games, and that postponement is no longer an option, and that your progress is saved or ruined by a single day and a single action. That’s how Socrates perfected himself, by attending to nothing except reason in everything he encountered. You yourself too, even though you are not yet Socrates, ought to live as someone who wants to be a Socrates.
–Epictetus, in A A.Long, How To Be Free: An Ancient Guide to the Stoic Life
[Title comes from 50th slogan of Seven Points of Training the Mind: The Root Text.]
