Tag Archives: Heraclitus

Day by Day

Each day is another link in the chain. Chains are no good if the links are weak. We can’t go back and fix our chain, but we can strengthen the newest links as we go along. We can build our links to handle a greater load, to be more resilient against outside forces, and to bolster us in times of need. We can create our chains of destiny to serve us and others when the need is the greatest. Everyday we forge a new link which means everyday counts. Throwing in a bad link every once in a while will do us no good. How can we build this chain?

Choice

What are our options? They are too numerous to count. But every choice matters; every decision counts.

The choices you make today will be your biography tomorrow.

James Altucher

One day, David decided to stay home. This was a choice. His country was at war. As the king, he should have been the one leading his men out to battle. In those days, that was his job. Instead, he made a self-serving choice that cascaded into a chain of subsequent bad choices. Laziness led to adultery which then led to murder. What started with one choice ended with a decree from God that the sword would never leave his house (2 Samuel 11-12).

Hopefully, the choices we make will not be as catastrophic as David’s. Yet,  they can quickly spiral downward if we do not remain vigilant.

Thought

Maybe, it is too simple to believe it is true. But here it is: We become what we think about (Emerson). If our minds are focused on violence all day, then in time we will become desensitized to it. We will begin to justify it in the behaviors of others. Eventually, we will even be able to justify it in our own behaviors. The same could be said for all the vices–slothfulness, drunkenness, gluttony, lust. Thankfully, this also holds true for the virtues—wisdom, discipline, justice, courage, love.

So, when we think about adding quality to our lives or subtracting undesirable traits, it begins with our thoughts.

Persist in visualizing the ideal man you are determined to be, and always think of yourself as you are ambitious to become. This mental attitude will help you to match your dream with its reality.

Orison Swett Marden

Action

Thoughts will set into our minds the types of people we wish to become. But at the end of the day, they must harmonize with our actions. Action is the testimony by which the world will view us. The houses we build in heaven are constructed by the works we do on earth. This is the Karma we set into motion while dwelling in our bodies. Every action has a reaction. Jung said, “You are what you do, not what you say you’ll do.” Not our words and thoughts, but what we actually do. This is the mark by which we will be known.

Do you want to know who you are? Don’t ask. Act! Action will delineate and define you.

Thomas Jefferson

We cannot control the outside forces that fate imposes upon us. Weather, fortune, and the deeds of others are often fickle and inconsiderate. Despite this, we can determine to be champions in this life, not victims.

Day by day, what you choose, what you think and what you do is who you become.

Heraclitus

Like but Different

An old friend that you haven’t seen in years. That is not the same person you knew from before. And you? You are not the same either. You may be like your old self, but you are different. Experience has changed you, and it has changed her. Maybe for the worst, but hopefully for the best.

You are excited to see that friend. You want to know what she has done and how she has grown over the years. You want to witness her evolution. Likewise, you want to demonstrate your own evolution and let her know that you are also doing well. The tragedy would be if either one of you were to seem stagnant, the same as you were years ago.

No man steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.

Heraclitus

We grow, learn, and evolve. Daily, we are adding new layers to our lives. Just as the water molecules in the river are not the same water molecules that were in it previously, you are not the same person you were previously. Even if you feel you haven’t grown, you still have changed. But by how much? What have you done to grow, learn, and evolve? We are never too old to move forward, never too old to be a different person entering the river again.

Feature photo by Katherine Hanlon on Unsplash

Guardian Angel

A guardian angel:

  • Keeps you safe.
  • Works on your behalf.
  • Guides you.
  • Helps you through the hard times.

Your relationship to a guardian angel:

  • Show love and respect.
  • Trust in the protection.

Most likely, all of us at one point has been told we have a guardian angel. This protector keeps us from going down the wrong path. They watch over us in our sleep and ensures no evil befalls us.

Angel sent by God to guide me,

Be my light and walk beside me;

Be my guardian and protect me;

On the paths of life direct me.

catholicgallery.org

For a moment, consider your character. It:

  • Keeps you safe.
  • Works on your behalf.
  • Guides you.
  • Helps you through the hard times.

Your character is your protection against would-be enemies. If you love and respect it, if you nurture it, it will be an impenetrable bastion. But if you stain it, you will open the floodgates and be assailed from all directions. Such is the power of your character. The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus once said, “A man’s character is his guardian divinity.”

Like a guardian angel, it will guide you, be your light and guide you; let it be your guardian and protect you; and on the paths of life direct you.

Feature photo by Marek Studzinski on Unsplash