pleasure betrays you

 Today Seneca tells us how virtue is immortal but pleasure betrays us. He says, "The highest good is immortal: it knows no ending, and does not admit of either satiety or regret: for a right-thinking mind never alters or becomes hateful to itself, nor do the best things ever undergo any change: but pleasure dies at the very moment when it charms us most."

And you can see his point, right? Virtue is all the time. If we do the right thing, it continues to be its own reward. And it builds on itself. We gain a reputation for being reasonable and virtuous and our lives spiral up. But if we pursue pleasure (for its own sake) we see it betraying us even as we're enjoying it. The same drug that made us ecstatic yesterday fails to please today. The sexual activity that was so amazing the first time pales on repetition. The alcohol we consumed last night visits us with a vengeance in the morning.

So far, we can see that what Seneca is teaching us is common sense and self evident. Let's see where he goes with it.

See you tomorrow!