“When you arise in the morning, think of what a precious privilege it is to be alive – to breathe, to think, to enjoy, to love.”   Marcus Aurelius

A busy fellow – Marcus was one indeed! Known as one of ancient Rome’s “Five Good Emperors,” he was also called “The Philosopher King,” and his reflective Meditations is widely admired as one of the world’s great treatises on living. Pondering some of his words prompted me to gather more of his inspiring thoughts:

“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.”

 “Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself, in your way of thinking…. To live happily is an inward power of the soul.”

“Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.”

“You have power over your mind – not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength….“Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig.”

“Loss is nothing else but change, and change is Nature’s delight.”

“The first rule is to keep an untroubled spirit. The second is to look things in the face and know them for what they are.”

“When jarred, unavoidably, by circumstance, revert at once to yourself and don’t lose the rhythm more than you can help. You’ll have a better grasp of harmony if you keep going back to it.”

“Begin – to begin is half the work, let half still remain; again begin this, and thou wilt have finished.”

“The art of life is more like the wrestler’s art than the dancer’s, in respect of this, that it should stand ready and firm to meet onsets that are sudden and unexpected.”

“You can discard most of the junk that clutters your mind – things that exist only there – and clear out space for yourself.” “Conceal a flaw, and the world will imagine the worst.”

“Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them.”

Bravo, Marcus! Let’s run with the stars and write on!