December

9th
SPENDTHRIFTS OF TIME

“Were all the geniuses of history to focus on this single theme, they could never fully express their
bafflement at the darkness of the human mind. No person would give up even an inch of their
estate, and the slightest dispute with a neighbor can mean hell to pay; yet we easily let others
encroach on our lives—worse, we often pave the way for those who will take it over. No
person hands out their money to passersby, but to how many do each of us hand out our lives!
We’re tight-fisted with property and money, yet think too little of wasting time, the one thing
about which we should all be the toughest misers.”
—SENECA, ON THE BREVITY OF LIFE, 3.1–2

T oday there will be endless interruptions: phone calls, emails, visitors, unexpected events. Booker T.
Washington observed that “the number of people who stand ready to consume one’s time, to no
purpose, is almost countless.”
A philosopher, on the other hand, knows that their default state should be one of reflection and inner
awareness. This is why they so diligently protect their personal space and thoughts from the intrusions of
the world. They know that a few minutes of contemplation are worth more than any meeting or report.
They also know how little time we’re actually given in life—and how quickly our stores can be depleted.
Seneca reminds us that while we might be good at protecting our physical property, we are far too lax
at enforcing our mental boundaries. Property can be regained; there is quite a bit of it out there—some of
it still untouched by man. But time? Time is our most irreplaceable asset—we cannot buy more of it. We
can only strive to waste as little as possible.
 December 10th
DON’T SELL YOURSELF TOO CHEAPLY

“I say, let no one rob me of a single day who isn’t going to make a full return on the loss.”
—SENECA, ON TRANQUILITY OF M IND, 1.11b

P eople spend a lot more money when they use credit cards than when they have to pull out actual cash.
If you ever wondered why credit card companies and banks push cards so aggressively, this is why.
The more credit cards you have, the more you’ll spend.
Do we treat the days of our lives like we treat our money? Because we don’t exactly know how many
days we’ll be alive, and because we try our hardest not to think about the fact that someday we’ll die,
we’re pretty liberal with how freely we spend our time. We let people and obligations impose on that
time, only rarely asking: What am I getting in return here?
Seneca’s maxim is the equivalent of cutting up your credit cards and switching to cash. He says to put
real thought into every transaction: Am I getting my money’s worth here? Is this a fair trade?
 December 11th
DIGNITY AND BRAVERY

“As Cicero says, we hate gladiators if they are quick to save their lives by any means; we favor
them if they show contempt for their lives.”
—SENECA, ON TRANQUILITY OF M IND, 11.4b

L yndon Johnson’s college classmates used to tell an embarrassing story about him. Johnson apparently
had a big mouth and felt he had to constantly dominate and intimidate others. Yet his biographer,
Robert Caro, makes it clear that when someone stood up to young Lyndon, he proved himself to be a
complete coward. In one instance, during an argument over a poker game, instead of fighting, Johnson
threw himself on a bed and “began kicking his feet in the air with a frantic, windmilling motion . . . like a
girl.” He shouted, “If you hit me, I’ll kick you! If you hit me, I’ll kick you!”
Later in his life, Johnson also worked extremely hard to avoid serving in World War II and lived it up
in California while other soldiers fought and died abroad. He later claimed to be a war hero. It was one
of his most shameful lies.
We do not need to disregard our physical safety or engage in wanton acts of violence to be brave. But
nobody respects a coward. Nobody likes a shirker of duty. Nobody admires a person who puts too high a
price on their own comfort and needs.
That’s the irony of cowardice. It’s aimed at self-protection, but it creates shameful secrets. Self-
preservation is hardly worth it because of everything it costs in return.
Be brave. Be dignified.
 December 12th
THE BEAT GOES ON

“Walk the long gallery of the past, of empires and kingdoms succeeding each other without
number. And you can also see the future, for surely it will be exactly the same, unable to deviate
from the present rhythm. It’s all one whether we’ve experienced forty years or an aeon. What
more is there to see?”
—MARCUS AURELIUS, M EDITATIONS, 7.49

A ll things die. Not just people but companies, kingdoms, religions, and ideas—eventually. The Roman
Republic lasted 450 years. The Roman Empire, of which Marcus Aurelius was considered to be one
of the “five good emperors,” lasted 500 years. The longest recorded life of a human being is 122 years.
The average life expectancy in the United States is a little over seventy-eight years. In other countries, in
other eras, it has been more and it has been less. But in the end, we all succumb, as Marcus said, to the
rhythm of events—of which there is always a final, determined beat. There is no need to dwell on this
fact, but there is no point in ignoring it either.
 December 13th
IT’S JUST A NUMBER

“You aren’t bothered, are you, because you weigh a certain amount and not twice as much? So
why get worked up that you’ve been given a certain lifespan and not more? Just as you are
satisfied with your normal weight, so you should be with the time you’ve been given.”
—MARCUS AURELIUS, M EDITATIONS, 6.49

T hey say age is just a number, but to some people it’s a very important one—otherwise, women
wouldn’t lie about being younger, and ambitious young men wouldn’t lie about being older. Rich
people and health nuts spend billions of dollars in an effort to move the expiration date from around
seventy-eight years to hopefully forever.
The number of years we manage to eke out doesn’t matter, only what those years are composed of.
Seneca put it best when he said, “Life is long if you know how to use it.” Sadly, most people don’t—they
waste the life they’ve been given. Only when it is too late do they try to compensate for that waste by
vainly hoping to put more time on the clock.
Use today. Use every day. Make yourself satisfied with what you have been given.