"Do not spoil what you have, by desiring what you have not." That's a quote by Epicurus. For those of you who are not up on your ancient Greek philosophers, Epicurus is the founder of a school of philosophy called Epicureanism. For him, the purpose of philosophy was to attain the happy, tranquil life. To have peace, and freedom from fear, and the absence of pain. Sounds like my kind of guy! For those of you with a few minutes to spare, and like a good puzzle, look up the Epicurean paradox. Given its a paradox, it is certain to make you think! Which is a great exercise.
Anyway, back to the quote! Now that you have an idea about what drove Epicurus, you can see where he is coming from with this quote. Oddly enough, there are only a few fragments left from the more than 300 written works attributed to him. In fact, much of what we know of him come from other writers and his followers. I don't know about you, but when I desire something I don't have, it is usually because nothing I have will give me the same utility. I must say that I have never desired something so much that it spoiled for me what I already had. Instead, I usually find that I desire something to enhance what I already have. For many people though, they become obsessed with what they don't have, and therefore fail to enjoy what they do have. I think the best way to avoid this problem is to really know what makes you happy. So many people go through life searching for what will make them happy. They search through the acquisition of consumer goods. I will be much more desirable if I have ripped jeans, therefore I will find someone who loves me for me and be happy. Or, people with nose rings look so cool. If I had a nose ring, I would be considered cool too, and maybe people will accept me for who I am. In both cases, the person wants one thing, but mistakenly thinks that they will get it if they have a particular look or product. Our culture seems to celebrate people who are different, yet many instead want to be different in the same way. Think of tattoos, hair styles, jewelry, clothing, and accessories. How many times do you see people who look different than you, but similar to many other people you see. Are any of them really being different? Or are they just trying to fit in with a particular type of person, while alienating the rest? We look at people, the way they dress, or what they drive, or who they hang out with and we make assumptions about them. Every once in a while, we will get to meet one of these different (different than ourselves, anyway) people and get to view their humanity up close and personal. We get to talk to them in a setting away from "Their" group or "Our" group, and we realize that much of what we usually see is just a facade. Underneath, we are mainly the same. Yes, I realize that there are differences. It is just that the differences don't have to be so great, if we can look past the facade and see the real person underneath. Overall, their wants and needs are similar to ours. For me, I am happiest when I don't care what others think of me. I like to talk to people, and hopefully make them smile or laugh. I like to share my thoughts and knowledge. That is me. Underneath it all, I think that is everybody. We all want acceptance for who we are. So much so for some that they are willing to change who they are to gain acceptance for who they are from others. It is a sad, sad, game that they play. And the shame of it is, that many of them don't even realize that they are playing it. I guess what I am trying to say is, be true to yourself. When you stop trying to chase other people's approval, you will find that you will finally approve of yourself. Some "smart" people will never learn this lesson. Sometimes the most obvious things are the hardest things to see.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
September 2021
Categories
All
|