Book 3, letter 1, part 2 of 2 - Dear Seneca

Book 3, Letter 1

Part 2 of 2

Dear Seneca,

Each day I read. Each day I am changed.

VI. On sharing knowledge.

I feel, my dear Lucilius, that I am being not only reformed, but transformed. I do not however, assure myself, or indulge the hope, that there are no elements left in me which need to be changed. Of course, there are many that should be made more compact, or made thinner, or be brought into greater prominence. And indeed this very fact is proof that my spirit is altered into something better, - that it can see its own faults, of which it was previously ignorant. In certain cases sick men are congratulated because they themselves have perceived that they are sick.

I therefore wish to impart to you this sudden change in myself; I should then begin to place a surer trust in our friendship, - the true friendship, which hope and fear and self-interest cannot sever, the friendship in which and for the sake of which men meet death. I can show you many who have lacked, not a friend, but a friendship; this however, cannot happen when souls are drawn together by identical inclinations into an alliance of honourable desires. And why can it not happen? Because in such cases men know that they have all things in common, especially their troubles.

Sometimes, to read of such friendships, is to be possessed by them, to feel the lingering glow of love that still gives off warmth, two thousand years later. I envy Lucilius, to have had a friend such as you Seneca.

I wonder at the powerful feelings that are evoked in me, as I read and re-read each letter in your collection. How is it possible that I can feel such an immediate affinity for you, for your wisdom? How is it that I can feel that you are actually writing to me, personally, but also to every human being with ears and eyes and a heart that can be moved by sincerity and wisdom? I live in an age of distance, where the bonds of human friendship are stretched across continents, where communities are connected not by physical presence and communal living, but by mutual interest and common affection for shared ideals. The borders of nations no longer keep people of mutual regard separated; we are able to communicate with the speed of lightning, with people living on the other side of the globe, and I, Seneca, am able to communicate with you, though we are separated by thousands of years and miles...a distance which though unimaginably vast, seems no distance at all, as I sit in bed with your book.

You are with me, Seneca, and I am glad, nay, overjoyed to have you in my company, to know that we have these things in common, especially our troubles.

I will continue my studies and share with you the proofs of my changing spirit.

With admiration and respect,

Morgan.