“Everything’s destiny is to change, to be transformed, to perish. So that new things can be born.” — Marcus Aurelius
Think about it: what are the modern conveniences we surround ourselves with, when stripped down to their elements? All of these cities, houses, automobiles, skyscrapers, machines, luxuries, endless lanes of concrete and asphalt?
They seem solid and perpetual to us, but that’s a deception. It’s really all just flimsy bits of glass and wood and plastic and leather and metal; a thin, temporary film on the earth; a residue of soap bubbles on the water.
Everything we build, buy and treasure will soon be reabsorbed, recycled and forgotten . . . along with the rest of us. Even something as seemingly ageless as the great pyramids in Egypt are being gradually swept away, grain by grain.
Pointing out the impermanence of these things isn’t meant to upset you, but rather to remind you of what’s really important. Why fret over things that will soon deteriorate, disappear, or get chucked into a landfill?
Instead, focus on the only thing that can never be taken away from you: your capacity to make rational choices. Tending to your own mind and keeping it in good repair is a better pastime than worrying about tomorrow’s garbage, anyway.