Marcus Aurelius – Michael A. Kahn

Thoughts on My Looming 50th Year College Reunion

Posted on August 4, 2023 by Michael Kahn

Way back in May of 1974, I graduated from Amherst College. It was a memorable day, including joining three of best friends on the podium for a goofy commencement address to our fellow grads and their parents. That’s me, second from the left, with the telltale 1970s white belt. And like so many of us…

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Remarkable Graveyards and Sad Words of Wisdom

Posted on October 18, 2020October 18, 2020 by Michael Kahn

As our days in St. Louis grow shorter–we move to Chicago in November–Margi and I took a hike through the remarkable Bellefontaine Cemetery, rightfully named a Best Hidden Gem by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. In addition to serving as the final resting place for many historical figures, such as William Clark of Lewis & Clark…

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Marcus Aurelius and COVID-19

Posted on April 16, 2020April 16, 2020 by Michael Kahn

I keep a copy of the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius nearby and am continually amazed by the wisdom and the timely relevance of the musings of a Roman emperor from nearly 1,900 years ago. I learned today that he lived through the Antonine Plague of 165 CE, a global pandemic that wiped out more than…

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A Thanksgiving Meditation From Nearly Two Millennia Ago

Posted on November 24, 2016 by Michael Kahn

On this Thanksgiving holiday, as we each pause to give thanks, I turn to a wise piece of advice from the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, whose book of meditations has remained in print (to the envy of all authors) since his death in 180 A.D. Here is that Thanksgiving advice, from book seven of his…

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Two More Wise Men on Immortality

Posted on June 19, 2013October 23, 2013 by Michael Kahn

Following up on my last post on immortality, I wanted to share some deep thoughts on the topic from two wise men–one dead for nearly two millennia, the other still hanging in there. First, Marcus Aurelius, who died in the year 180 A.D. He wrote in his Meditations: “He who has a vehement desire for…

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