10 Minute Timer

Tonight I'm trying to get into the habit of writing again by putting on a 10 minute timer and trying to let my thoughts flow into my writing.

The easiest topics to write about are opinion pieces and journals. It might not seem like an interesting thing to write about but the act of writing helps solidify memories and gives you the opportunity to extract more insights from past experiences.

Lately I've been learning about Stoicism. My perception of stoic was initially of someone that didn't show or have many feelings. A person that countered positive feelings with a void or a seemingly cold attitude. To some extent that may be true but today my understanding is that stoic is someone that understands what is in and out of their control. Someone that can exercise control over their emotions and their actions. Someone that has an internal sense of doing the right thing and lives according their destiny. Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor and famous Stoic philosopher.The private notes that he wrote have been published as the Meditations.

The language he uses is hard for me to comprehend completely but there are powerful sentences and quotes that resonate deeply. In the first book of his meditations he writes of all that he has learned from the people around him. I was able to reflect on this and think of all the things I have learned from the people I have met. No matter how small the interaction there is something to have been gained from it. It's a good reminder that living with a gracious attitude can change your outlook and opportunities in life. That is what I gained from his first book.

16 minutes.