Do You Always Talk Back?

It's day 163 of documenting 2025.

Hey there, reader! 👋
I hope it's all good wherever you're reading from.
You're not just a random reader, you're my friend 🎀
That's why I'm sharing my journey in 2025 with you.

Today, we'll do the sections as usual...
Highlights and Meditations.
For the former, I would be sharing the whole note, as the theme is an emotional one.

And for Meditations, I would share another excerpt from the book...
But this time I had a little help from ChatGPT to interprete it.
(I didn't understand it 😐)

As for yesterday, it was a rainy one.
I was supposed to do my own laundry but the weather stood me up, I guess.
(I usually dry my clothes outside...)
Apart from that,
Yesterday went well.

Let's get into the sections....

365 Days With Self-discipline
📌 On Angry Comebacks

"Never respond to an angry person with a fiery comeback, even if he deserves it... Don’t allow his anger to become your anger."
Quote by Bohdi Sander.

Yep! It's about anger.
That's why mentioned "emotional" earlier.
Who doesn't get angry? 💢

"Anger is one of the most infectious emotions. When somebody attacks them verbally, for many people the urge to offer a nasty, angry comeback is so overpowering that they do it automatically.
Before you know it, you’re engaged in a verbal fight. 

Working on controlling your anger can provide great benefits when it comes to strengthening your impulse control."

Tell me about it!
I always avoid situations in which I'm aware that it may lead to an argument.
Truth is, I have no idea how I would react when I get really angry.
So, it never happens.

If someone offends me or gives a derogatory comment, I just laugh it off or smile 😁
Why?
The problem is with them, not me.
Someone asked once, "what can make you angry?"
"Myself", I answered.
It's true. I'm the only one that can make me angry.
Sounds weird, right?

(Let's get back to the quotes...)

"Every time somebody attacks you, resist the temptation to engage in a fight by either finding something funny about the situation, deflecting the attack (for example by thanking the attacker for expressing their opinion, which might then strike you as humorous), or if those are not possible, walking away from the situation."

"Remember that in the grand scheme of things you gain nothing — and risk a lot — by responding with a fiery comeback.
As good as venting feels at that moment, losing your temper is not worth it when you consider the potential longer-term cost, such as losing your job, your reputation, a key relationship, or even just ruining your mood for the entire day."

Preach, Martin!
Preach!!
Anyone who reads this will definitely learn something 😌
(Martin Meadows is the author of this book, by the way...)

"Refusing to respond with anger is a simple exercise, but not easy . And that’s why, combined with the fact that most of us deal with aggressive people at least once a week, it can be a valuable opportunity for you to increase your self-control when interacting with others."

"As a bonus quote for today, ponder the words of Hazrat Inayat Khan: 

“Very often in everyday life one sees that by losing one’s temper with someone who has already lost his, one does not gain anything but only sets out upon the path of stupidity.
He who has enough self-control to stand firm at the moment when the other person is in a temper, wins in the end.
It is not he who has spoken a hundred words aloud who has won; it is he who has perhaps spoken only one word.”

As deep words go, this is probably the most profound of them all.
On the topic of anger, by the way...
A whole lesson on angry comebacks 💯

If you're someone who always talks back, I hope you find a path to self-control.
Because in the end, silence is golden.

Now, let's move to Meditations.

Meditations

I read this particular excerpt multiple times.
But I couldn't fully understand it, so I asked ChatGPT.
It went like this:

Me: This is an excerpt from the book, Meditations.
Can you tell me what Marcus Aurelius meant when he said this?

"Whatever this is that I am, it is flesh and a little spirit and an intelligence. Throw away your books; stop letting yourself be distracted.

That is not allowed. Instead, as if you were dying right now, despise your flesh. A mess of blood, pieces of bone, a woven tangle of nerves, veins, arteries.
Consider what the spirit is: air, and never the same air, but vomited out and gulped in again every instant.

Finally, the intelligence. Think of it this way: You are an old man. Stop allowing your mind to be a slave, to be jerked about by selfish impulses, to kick against fate and the present, and to mistrust the future."

ChatGPT: Marcus Aurelius, in this passage, is calling for a brutally honest reflection on what we truly are—"just flesh, breath, and mind".

He urges detachment from the distractions of the world (like books or comforts) and reminds us of our mortality.
The flesh is temporary and decaying; the breath is fleeting and constantly renewed; but the 'intelligence'—our reasoning mind—is what truly defines us.

He’s saying:
"Stop wasting your mind on petty desires, regrets, and fears. Stop resisting reality. Use your reason. Live with purpose, as if this moment could be your last."

It’s a call to live with clarity, discipline, and acceptance.

Wow 😲
That's what it meant!
I think I understood a bit of what Marcus was trying to say..
But I just needed the full interpretation.
It's real deep, my friend.

I hope you've learned a lot 💜
I also hope that somehow, you now have a better understanding of the world around you.
I know I do!

Yeah...
It's mid-week already.
A few more days and I'll be back to work at the school.
Yay! (Not so excited...)
It's part of the process, my friend.

This is where I draw the curtains for today's post.
Timer just rang...
I used 30 minutes to type this post.
I guess it's a new record!
Or not 😒
Considering that I'm still typing...

Anyways, thank you so much for showing up today.
Thanks for reading 🎀
If you want to share your thoughts on the blog in general, you can do that over here.
I would love to hear from you.

You might want to check out former posts too...
And catch up on the ones you missed.
To do that, visit Documenting 2025.
I'll see you there 😉

I'm Duon Ada.
I'm documenting 2025,
And I'll see you tomorrow.
Ciao 💕