12 Rules to Live By
~ Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 - 1894)
1. Make up your mind to be happy. Learn to find pleasure in simple things.
2. Make the best of circumstances. No one has everything and everyone has something of sorrow.
3. Don't take yourself too seriously.
4. Don't let criticism worry you. You can't please everybody.
5. Don't let your neighbors set your standards; be yourself.
6. Do things you enjoy doing but stay out of debt.
7. Don't borrow trouble. Imaginary things are harder to bear than actual ones.
8. Since hate poisons the soul, do not cherish enmities and hold grudges. Avoid people who make you unhappy.
9. Have many interests. If you can't travel, read about places.
10. Don't hold post-mortems or spend time brooding over sorrows and mistakes.
11. Do what you can for those less fortunate than yourself.
12. Keep busy at something. A very busy person never has time to be unhappy.
I came across this in one of my quote journals this morning. Not sure where I found it, but Stevenson's "rules" must have appealed to me and so I took note of them. It struck me, as I wrote the title, how short a life he lived. In quickly perusing Wikipedia, I discovered Stevenson had a "weak chest" all his life. Sounds familiar to me at the moment....
Rule number three has been suggested to me countless times over the years and has become much easier to follow with age. I think they all provide something to think about today, good reminders to basically just "keep life simple".
Enjoy the day.
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