Embrace your destiny
Flow with the Universe
“Do not seek for things to happen the way you want them to; rather, wish that what happens happen the way it happens: then you will be happy.” - Epictetus
Gravity is one of the natural forces which makes everything with a mass attract each other. It’s because of it that we, humans, are here. That’s why you are there on the other side reading my newsletter. It’s the cause that made the galaxies, the stars, the planets and, of course, our home in this deep void: the Earth. Because of those interactions is why microorganisms were developed in the young Earth too, and more lately complex ones were raised. Then animals came and our race got into the game.
We like to think we are rational animals which is true, but we are at the mercy of the Universe. Our mind works using the same natural forces that rule Nature.
We can condense all of this by thinking that we are the summary of past events that occurred in life and before. Our mind works according to experiences lived in our lifetime and those experiences are the result of those events.
We can not escape this. So, the next time you receive a call from the alarm system at 3 AM you must think about two things. One is that the Universe's providence put this challenge in front of you to test you and mould your character and two is that it is fine because you should behave according to Nature and Universe and Nature are the same. Try going against the Universe is a vicious behaviour.
Stoics have a concept for this. They call all of these concepts Amor fati which translates as Love your destiny.
Don’t get the message wrong. It’s not about having a passive attitude about life and its events. It’s about changing your mindset, leaving victimhood about uncomfortable situations behind and taking action.
Next time your phone rings at 3 AM, a better inner conversation could be: An alert at 3 AM? Great! This is another test to probe my temperance. Fixing whatever is failing, I’m helping the app to keep working, so it can keep making money used to pay my colleagues and me, so I can contribute to my home economy, ensuring the wellbeing of my wife and children.