The greatness of a man is not measured by length of the shadow he casts.
Measure instead that shadow's breadth:
See how widely it falls, how many shelter in its shade.
See what he chooses to cultivate within his domain of influence.
See who he chooses to admit, and who he bars from entry.
We are each of us an oasis. The greatest among us welcome all to the garden of our fortune.
On his best day, with his cup overflowing,
any man can share kindness, patience, and respect.
Judge a man at his worst then, forsaken and low, for that is when his true character is revealed.
All that we are given in life is time.
Inequitably, impartially, and arbitrarily.
All that is of consequence, it follows,
is how we choose to spend that time.
It doesn't matter what you believe. It doesn't matter what you think. It doesn't matter what you want. Those things die with you.
What matters is what you do. What you say. What you're working towards.
When you're silent.
Those elements of yourself that you enact in the world around you, that you reflect back at the environment, shaping it in every tiny way.
Those define you. Daily.
#goals #lifelessons #advice #stoicism #lifestyle #DBMeditations #mindfulness
Carson Hill