Detaching from Aversion

In Epictetus’ second chapter, he discusses the idea of aversion. He states that “aversion proposes you not fall into what you are averse to.” This idea comes from within a person and what they desire to do. For a person to meet their goal, there are going to be setbacks or ups and downs along your path. You need to “detach your aversion from everything not up to us, and transfer it to what is against nature among the things that are up to us.” In the past, I always had set expectations for myself but never put thought into what could limit me. Once I had that feeling of misfortune because I did not understand that circumstances could change the course, I understood I needed to not place so much on expectations. This is what Epictetus is talking about. Being able to let go of what you cannot control, like death or health, and focus on what you can like time management or putting work in. I learned not to put too much into how I reach my goal but what I can do to get there. Rolling with the punches is another way to describe this. Things out of your control happen all the time, but you cannot hold on to that idea. Instead, let it go and keep working towards that goal.