<h2 class="wp-block-heading eplus-wrapper" id="crosshead">Ancient wisdom</h2>

David Von Drehle could hardly believe his eyes. There was his new neighbour, washing his girlfriend's car. What made the scene unusual was the neighbour's age: Charlie White was 102.

Over the remaining seven years of White's life, he and the journalist became friends. Now Von Drehle has written a book about what he learnt from the retired doctor.

Charlie had had serious setbacks in life. When he was eight, his father died after falling down a lift shaft. But when Charlie told the story, says Von Drehle,¹ "He never remarked on the apparent injustice of a good man's premature death."

Instead, Von Drehle believes, Charlie reached two conclusions. One was that he could get through anything, no matter how awful. The other was that "the crucial measure of one's existence is not its length but its depth".

Von Drehle saw Charlie as a believer in StoicismA philosophy that originated in the ancient world and still has many adherents today. Stoics seek to control their emotions and preserve their happiness in the face of adversity.. This ancient Greek philosophy focuses on living a virtuous life, controlling your feelings and following the laws of nature and reason.

It emphasises wisdom and justice, as well as freeing yourself from envy, resentment and anxiety. It teaches us to distinguishTell or show the difference. between things that are in our power and those that are not. As Von Drehle puts it:

"You must let go of the vain idea that you can control people or events or the tides of fate. But you can choose what you stand for and what you will try to accomplish." You can choose hope rather than despair, beauty rather than ugliness, love rather than hate.

Born in 1905, Charlie lived through huge changes. But his Stoical attitude helped him embrace them and recognise the opportunities they brought.

He started out as a general doctor, but the coming of antibioticsMedicines that fight bacterial infections. in the early 1940s convinced him that only specialists had a real future.

Rather than despair over the end of the practice he had built up, he looked for a new skill to master. And as a wartime doctor in the US Army, he decided to become an anaesthetistA doctor who gives patients medicines that make them unable to feel pain before surgery. . So, Von Drehle writes, "He returned home as a pioneer in a new and rapidly growing specialty."

After Charlie's death, his family found a sheet of paper with his rules for life. They included:

"Think freely. Practise patience. Smile often. Forgive and seek forgiveness.

"Feel deeply. Tell loved ones how you feel.

"Be soft sometimes. Cry when you need to. Observe miracles."

Should we all become Stoics?

Yes: Like Charlie, we are living through turbulent times and massive changes. AI could upset all our career plans. Stoicism teaches us to be positive: an uncertain future is not necessarily a bad one.

No: We cannot control our emotions any more than we can control fate, and our attitude to life depends on the mindset we were born with. Trying to be something you are not is a waste of time.  

Or... Stoicism can be very helpful to some people. The principles of Alcoholics Anonymous are very similar, emphasising the importance of knowing what you can and cannot change.

Stoicism - A philosophy that originated in the ancient world and still has many adherents today. Stoics seek to control their emotions and preserve their happiness in the face of adversity.

Distinguish - Tell or show the difference.

Antibiotics - Medicines that fight bacterial infections.

Anaesthetist - A doctor who gives patients medicines that make them unable to feel pain before surgery.