We Suffer More In Imagination Than In Reality

My best friend started crying when he got out of the class.

‘What’s going on?” I asked calmly.

We had just taken a test for Microelectronics (not easy).

‘I failed,” he said while crying.

‘And how do you know?” I asked again.

‘I just know it.”

And he left.

He got an 8/10. I got a 9/10.

He cried for no reason.

He suffered in advance.

He borrowed future suffering.

He created problems that never really existed.

"I am an old man and have experienced many troubles, most of which have never happened,” said Mark Twain.

Don’t you have enough problems already—do you want more?

We spend so much time worrying about how bad things are going to be, that we actually torture ourselves in advance.

And here’s an interesting question for you:

‘What if you’re worried about something that will never happen?’

You will have successfully wasted precious time—time stolen from a worthier pursuit.

Life cannot be lived that way—you know that, right?

Look, I’m with you. Let’s cry together. Let’s moan. Let’s say that our lives suck.

But let’s first make sure that we’re worried about something that actually happened.

Otherwise, what are we even doing?

No matter how lucky you are, tomorrow isn’t promised.

‘We sent our thoughts too far ahead,” Seneca said.

Don’t worry whether bad stuff will happen—because it will.

A Stoic is aware of the possibilities of life and, at the same time, has their head down and focuses on what’s in front of them and what’s inside the circle of their control.

Is that complicated and a bit of a balance?

Sure. But welcome to life. You can handle it.

"How much of your unhappiness comes from what you THINK other people think of you?" a friend of mine once said.

I was embarrassed to answer.

What about you?

Till next time,

Said The Stoic

PS. I appreciate every single one of you guys for allowing me to write about what I love—Stoicism—and hopefully help you learn more about it. It means a lot.