On Helping and Harming
Who would harm me envies me. Who would harm the world envies all. The former honors me with his flattering hatred. The latter is a groveling worm beneath my foot, a tyrant in spirit…
Tagged: friendship
On Letting Go of Friends
Throughout my teaching life, spanning twenty-five years, I have frequently had the honor of serving as private counselor or mentor to students struggling with personal problems — usually problems of an existential, as opposed to practical, nature. I seem to have a knack for attracting young people who are a little outside modernity’s social norms, whether temperamentally, intellectually, or both. One reason for...