What would MA do?

The world feels heavy right now. Conflict abroad, extreme weather, constant noise, and here in Minnesota, a sense of tension and uncertainty that’s hard to ignore. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed or tempted to tune it all out.

So… who is MA?

While I still rely heavily on my mom’s wisdom for many of life’s decisions, in this case I’m talking about Marcus Aurelius.

Lately, I’ve been asking myself: How would he respond to chaos like this?

To explore that question, I turned to Ryan Holiday’s book Right Thing, Right Now, part of his Stoic Virtue Series.

The book opens with a passage from Meditations that stopped me in my tracks:

“Injustice is blasphemy. Because Nature designed rational beings for each other’s sake - to help, not harm, one another. To transgress its will, then, is to blaspheme against the oldest of the gods.”

Help, not harm.

It sounds simple, almost obvious. And yet, it’s incredibly demanding.

The book focuses on the Stoic virtue of Justice, framed through Me, We, and All. I won’t do it justice here (no pun intended), but it’s filled with stories of people who lived aligned with that virtue and others who didn’t.

One excerpt felt especially relevant:

 “Justice is not a thing that happens, it’s something that’s made, that’s continuing to be made, even as you read this. By people who get together, even as you read this. Sometimes because it affects them directly. Often and more beautifully when it does not. People who want to leave the world better than they found it…”

Different words than Marcus, same message.

And it’s not an easy one, especially when it feels safer to keep your head down, focus on your own challenges, and move on. Particularly if you’re not directly impacted.

I don’t know where this reflection will lead me long-term. But right now, it’s guiding small, tangible choices: bringing a few extra cans of soup to our church collection… making a point to schedule lunch with my team at a local restaurant that’s felt the strain of uncertainty… choosing, when I can, to help rather than harm.

Not grand gestures. Just deliberate ones.

Learning doesn’t always give us answers.

Sometimes it simply gives us direction.

Learn in the Flow

Jason