Wednesday, January 20, 2010

now and then

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Yesterday, while thumbing through "The Meditations of Marcus Aurelius," a book I haven't looked at in perhaps 30 years, it occurred to me again how there is no time or place distant enough to slice and dice the wisdoms of this life.

Marcus Aurelius, a Roman emperor, thought many of the same good and encouraging and confounding thoughts that any man or woman in 2010 might. And his thoughts had been poured over in ages before him.

Naturally, there are eureka moments when someone stumbles into the questions and answers that move people, but I think it would be a good idea to remember that there is only one story ... so it's not all that surprising.

I don't mean to play some smarmy 'one-ness' card, some 'interconnectedness' anthem. It's more plain than that. Marcus Aurelius had a high profile and a good education and so he is remembered by some. But shepherds along the valley floor and yak drivers among the peaks are no different.

Questions and answers ... it's pretty much the same, whether it's designated as 'profound' or 'shallow.'

Just because something surprises me doesn't mean it's surprising.
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