According to White, some aspects of our lives are not in our control. He gives some examples of aspects of our lives that we can control which include our opinions, our impulses, and our ambitions and aversions. Some other aspects according to White are not under our control and they include our bodies, our possessions, our reputations, and our public offices.
In summary, things that are provided by nature freely and are not limited to us are the things that are in our control. However, those that are not in our control are weak, limited, and to some extended hindered and they do not belong to us.
The author attributes some of the human suffering to the state of mind. He argues that people who have a mindset that what does not belong to them is actually theirs they live miserable lives. He says that this mindset gives one a wrong perception of the real world.
For humans to enjoy and live peaceful live, the author suggests that humans should live and accept life as it is. Believe what is not yours actually does not belong to you and being contented with what is yours. People blame nature and he gods when they cannot get what they assume or think belongs to them.
To be at peace with one’s self is to know that what does not belong to you is not yours and that way you people will not have to quarrel over issues in life. According to the author, one will not have enemies and have to do things unwillingly.
Achieving great goals comes with great sacrifices and for a person to succeed in achieving them, he or she must let some things go. There has to be a change of schedules and plans to accommodate the new strategy in order to succeed and this may involve postponing some current ambitions.
Everything that happens has a price that goes along with it. It is greedy and unjust for anyone to desire or pursue goals and he does not want to pay the prices his achievement is bought. The author shows a great relationship between nature and physical achievement, which is the essence of cosmology.
The author argues that there is nothing in the world that happens that can be termed as bad. They all happen to influence some other events to take place. People must look always at the events that lead to the occurrence of an action rather than the action itself.
Discipline according to the author is all about doing the right thing considering how it would feel if the same thing were done to you. Having strict routines and sticking to them is beneficial and helps one to achieve his or her goals. Nature has a way of shaping us and being a jack-of-all-trades gives no satisfaction.
One has to commit him or herself to a certain school of thought or idea and pursue it to perfection. Doing things halfheartedly never produces good results. Nature is like a role in a play where we do not get to choose the role but we are expected to play the role skillfully.
The author argues life and the abiding events can be all favorable if we choose to make them so. Our attitudes towards our life events shape the effects they bring about. It is clearly argued in the book that different people can adjust to different situations. Nature gives you a father but not a good father, the latter is not in our control. A person has to take the initiative to guide and respond to the patterns of nature.
Making a judgment entails looking at the natural responses of others. Taking an action must not precede reason and careful judgment. As we pursue our goals and ambitions, our actions and judgment should consider how others would be affected by our actions. We should be able to tell the arm and benefits that accrue to certain actions.
This represents the merits and demerits of our decisions in relation to our own lives. People who are in the process of success never talking about their achievements neither causing harm to anyone. They take their livelihoods upon themselves without putting blame on anyone and they do not praise people. As pointed out by the author, integrity is to show restraint when censured.
It seems throughout the text a person’s greatest enemy is himself. Humans have a propensity to judge and do things to their fellow men with intent to harm. However, when the same is done to them they become so angry and blame everyone around them. The writer argues that being human is holding others as highly as one holds him or herself.
People love to do things just to please and show others. This is not the way to do things. When one is accustomed to living a simple low budget life, he or she should not change his or her living standards just so that he or she can please people. Showing-off leaves a person feeling empty and dissatisfied. It might also bring a lot of pain if a desired attention is not granted.
Adapting to hardship requires deliberate efforts to attain it and this is where a few of the valued luxuries are put on hold. Things that please you or make life a comfortable zone have to be weeded-out and make a change. To be at peace, when a person speaks ill of you should not answer him or her. Keeping quiet is a very effective way of sending a message.
People talk badly of others because they are convinced in their own opinion that it is okay for them to do that. In such a situation, they cannot understand your point of view. Spending a lot of resources on things that concern or benefit the body is simply a display of lack of natural talent.
This essay has described different philosophies and has shown different aspects of our lives that are influenced by nature. The author insists on people practicing to present themselves as they are without having to prove to be different from their real personality. He is more concerned with self-actualization and acceptance.
If a person has to do anything, they should do it to please themselves and not for any other reason. This gives a person’s self-motivation to continue doing things for their own benefits. Working towards pleasing self helps to protect a person from getting hurt by other ungrateful humans.
The essay shows ways through which nature interacts with humans as well as ways through which relationships between a person and the others.