“The active man should be able to take things easily, while the man who is inclined towards repose should be capable of action.â Seneca the Younger, in Letters from a Stoic
The Stoics, in general, were no fans of extremes.
Apparently, they were not into excuses either.
Your temperament may be that of a timid person, but it doesnât mean you canât speak up to a bully when necessary. Youâll have to make a greater effort though.
You may be inclined toward messiness, but you could tidy up to make someone else happy every once in a while. Sometimes, youâll have to change your ways to some extent if you want to maintain a cordial relationship with a roommate, or even to make a marriage work.
You may be argumentative by nature, but you could let something slide every now and then to keep the peace. Again, marriage comes to mind.
Thereâs nothing wrong, really, with being an opinionated, quiet, talkative, messy, shy, active, or chill person.
However, âThatâs just the way I am,â or âThatâs how I roll, period,â is often not a good excuse for acting in certain ways or not acting at all.
When it matters, we ought to be capable of change and of making exceptions.
Day 28 of 30-day writing challenge on a single topic: Quotes from Seneca the Youngerâs Letters from a Stoic.
Why this topic? Because I canât get over how timely and brilliant Senecaâs words are -2,000 years after he wrote them.