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No man is an island.

We’ve taken the line from the John Donne poem and turned it into a common expression, but we’ve missed the point. It’s not simply that we can’t exist by ourselves. It’s much deeper than that.

What John Donne was trying to express is something akin to the collectivism of the Stoics—the idea that we are all in this together. That we were put here for each other, that our fates are bound up inseparably from each other. To be indifferent to the suffering of others, to harden your heart? It is to harm yourself as well as others.

Every man is a piece of the continent,
A part of the main.
If a clod be washed away by the sea,
Europe is the less.
As well as if a promontory were.
As well as if a manor of thy friend's
Or of thine own were:
Any man's death diminishes me,
Because I am involved in mankind.
The past 12 months comprised a year of adversity and difficulty and death. From George Floyd to the lives cut short by COVID-19 to the dreams deferred, damaged and destroyed by the economic devastation that followed. It is so easy to turn inward in moments like this, to focus on all the things you have to deal with. It’s easy to be callous. It’s easy to look for excuses and rationalizations (“The death toll is actually very low.” “Most of the victims were already old.”) We cannot accept that—of ourselves or of anyone. We can’t let this go on. It was preventable and even today it remains stoppable… if we would just wear our shields, if we could just understand that magical thinking doesn’t exempt your wedding, your Thanksgiving travel plans from spreading the virus.

Why do you think Marcus Aurelius wept for the victims of the plague—even though most of them would have been faceless strangers from a population of 50 million? Because he believed that Rome was not a collection of individuals—of islands—but a continent, a part of the main.

We owe it to each other, to ourselves, to get our act together. We must be involved in mankind. We cannot give into selfishness or stupidity. We cannot be indifferent—not about this.

We are made for each other. Our duty is to the common good. We can’t keep neglecting it...The Daily Stoic

No one can cause you to have any kind of emotional reaction without your first giving them permission to do so. You alone are responsible for your feelings and emotions. When you know what you plan to do with your life, you will not allow annoying situations to deter you from your goals for long. If you set ambitious goals for yourself and work enthusiastically toward them, you will quickly realize that you don’t have time to allow petty annoyances to upset you and keep you from your objectives.

I am flat on my back in a deep hole. I can see the stars. Just came to, do not know how I got here. My leg is broken. I am nauseaus. What a night. ( to be continued).