As the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius lay down in bed, he struggled to get out of it. He philosophized and then forced himself to rise. He aimed to be useful.
At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?”
If he still struggled…
So you were born to feel “nice”? Instead of doing things and experiencing them? Don’t you see the plants, the birds, the ants and spiders and bees going about their individual tasks, putting the world in order, as best they can? And you’re not willing to do your job as a human being? Why aren’t you running to do what your nature demands?
Aurelius then added this into his Meditations. Such interesting insights truly needed one to be the overlord of an Empire. As the emperor, he was one of the few people in the ancient world to have this choice. Almost everyone had no choice but to get out of bed and do something. Otherwise, they would starve!
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