The man who is only happy with present things sets narrow limits to his enjoyment. Both the future and the past can delight us – one in anticipation, the other in memory – but one is uncertain and may not happen, while the other cannot fail to have been. What madness it is, therefore, to lose our grip on that which is the surest thing of all! Seneca, Epistles 99.5 In that last passage, from a letter on the subject of grief, Seneca is advising the bereaved to value their memories. So he does not say that recollection of the past should be avoided on principle. He discourages the recollection of
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Really like this; make good use of everything for the virtuously endeavor of tranquility of the mind.
