Should We Fear the Future?

For better or for worse, I'm a huge Stoicism fan. It's not for everyone, but I feel as though the less reactive we can be and the more unattached we can live, the happier our lives may end up being. These two things don't encapsulate Stoicism by any means, but they're a good start. I think what Stoicism does best is training our minds to be ready for whatever may be thrown our way. I saw a quote from Seneca (one of the most famous Stoics to walk the Earth) the other day that sums the mindset up perfectly:

"At this very moment, fate is preparing some device against me."

A roundabout way of saying that the future is almost guaranteed to hold discomfort for us. Whether it be losing our job, a loved one, or suffering an injury, chances are we won't make it through the rest of our lives without some kind of misfortune. Stoics would not say that we're wrong to mourn or to feel pain or sadness, but simply to be aware of the fact that our time on this Earth will be filled with the good and the bad. That's part of what it means to be alive; to live through the best and the worst.

We have no way of knowing what fate has in store for us tomorrow, let along next year. But the more we can control our reactions, the better equipped we'll be. There are countless ways to practice our responses; from meditation to journaling to therapy, we have tools readily available to make sure we're capable when life strikes. The goal is never to try and control the future. It's to be able to control our response to it.

"A Single Seed" is my attempt to get out one idea every day that I've learned or accumulated over the years, with the hope that it may stick in someone else's memory bank as well. The idea may be related to fitness, business, life, or philosophy, but I think you'll find that many can change domains if you wish them to. With each seed planted, a new life awaits.

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