Calamitosus est animus futuri anxius.

Calamitosus est animus futuri anxius.

Wretched is a mind anxious about the future.

I have been reading an essay or two of Michel de Montaigne before bed lately. I have daytime and nighttime reading materials; they have different tones and speeds. I prefer more contemplative reading at night something I can think about while I sleep. Of note this was my preferred mode of study in college, one good study session before bed and I would continue to work things over in mind during sleep. In one essay Montaigne discusses what happens when our emotions get carried away beyond us, he discusses Plato’s counsel that one, “should do what thou hast to do, and know thyself” in place of anxiety over the future. This seems thematic considering our current real or imagined culture war. Real or imagined it seems that anxiety about the future is the point of concern for everyone.

“Those who reproach humanity with always gaping towards the future-touch upon the most common of human aberrations. We are never “at home” we are always outside ourselves. Fear desire, hope, impel us toward the future, they rob us of feelings and concern for what now is, in order to spend time over what will be-even we when we ourselves shall be no more.”  I paraphrased Montaigne a little here. Rather than continuous admonishment of others and whatever the current thing is perhaps it would be better to focus on your own personal here and now. Why feel hopeless about a future that you can’t possibly know. At all points in the history of mankind everyone everywhere has believed and forecasted the end of humanity. If there is one constant it is that. Every year, decade etc. this, whatever the new current apocalyptic thing is will be the final straw. Perhaps, but what can you do to affect it other than be in the present and prepare or guard against it. If you are doing the things to protect yourself from whatever cultural or societal degeneration is going on, then why would you need to feel hopeless? Surely countless other people have weathered the collapse of culture and organized society in the past.

Why worship the future when the present is in your grasp? If the future is already spoiled, I guess that exempts one from doing the hard work in the present to safeguard their future for themselves or future offspring. Constantly ruminating on the failures of society tarnishes the present. In the many thousands of years that we have existed and given the multitude of personal, collective tragedies and complete world collapses we have endured we are surprisingly resilient. Even if the entire world is falling apart around you why worry, keep pushing forward and upward.

Also, stop consuming things on social media or any form of media that make you mentally, spiritually or emotionally ill.