“Cultivate your garden.” It was a reference to Candide, a novel written by the French philosopher Voltaire, who warned of the perils of worrying about things beyond one’s control. Rather than fret over the state of the world and the many issues plaguing mankind, which would only lead to endless despair, Voltaire argued, people ought to focus on their own lives, or tend to their own gardens. That was the way to find true peace of mind.
