Evening star., 1925-07-15

corded can solace themselves with
the above Quotation.
X
Think not so much of what thou
hast not as of what thou hast
'Of the things which thou hast.
select the best. and then reflect how
eagerly they would have been sought
If thou hadst them not
AT the same time, however, take
care that thou dost not through be-
ing pleased with them accustom thy
self to overvalue them, so as to be
disturbed if ever thou shouldst not
have them"
Here we see Marcus Aurelius forti.
flying himself against such inevitable
hours as might come when he should
, lose those things which he valued SO,
This very human man set down
what he feared, in order that when
1t happened he might tell himself Il
told YOU sou
We all are like that None OF us
is such an incorrigible optimist that
he dares defy Time, Fate. Fortune.
What May Happen
Even when "a philosopher-whic
the average person is not let that be
said once and for all-notes down a
happy thought about vaIuing the or
dinary things of life which one does
possess over the many he does not
he finds il wise to add warning
about not valuing them too much,
after all
Look about you. Marcus Aurelius
Antonir1us says, in effect: think not
of the expensive house you yearn for,
but more of the little one thou hast.
Considering your little house, reflect
upon It's good points-for II has them
and then think how eagerly you
would pine for this house If YOU had
it not,
Similarly with ones car-if you had
no automobile at all, how splendid and
altogether desirable would seem that
ancient vehicle parked outside the
door.
Here is hot paragraph with a
| kick" in the end of IL:
The gods. who are immortal, are
not vexed because during SO long a
time they must tolerate continually
men such as they are and so many
of them bad, and. besides this, they
also take care of them in all WAYS.
But thou, who are destined to end so
soon. art thou wearied of enduring the
bad, and this, too, when thou art one
of them?'
Ouch,
Aurelius was not knocking" his
readers, it must be remembered. for
he originally had but one reader-him-
self lie simply was harping upon
one of his favorite themes, the ne
cessity for putting up with malice.
meanness, etc, since the world is so
full of it.
If God so tolerates them he SAYS.
why cannot we show d little charity
on our own part?
After all, what is badness?" he in.
quires, natvely answering:
1t is that which thou hast often
seen.
"On the occasion of everything
which happens, keep this in mind,
/ that 1t is that which thou has often
seen.
Everywhere up and down thou
wilt find the same things, with which
the old histories are filled those of the
Middle Ages and those of our own dav
with which cities and houses are filed
now.
There is nothing new; all things
are both familiar and short lived"
These last two paragraphs have
startling resemblance to those in Ec-
clesiastes:
'One generation passeth away, and
another generation cometh; but the
earth abideth forever.
| "All things are full of labor: man
cannot utter it; the eye is not salts
/ fed with seeing, nor the ear filled
| with hearingI-
The thing that hath been, it is
| that which shall be; and that which is
| done is that which shall be done; and
there is no new thing under the sun"