The journal of The Stoic Gym

With this issue of THE STOIC, we start our fifth year of publication. Since we started the magazine, we have published about 400 pieces on Stoicism – articles, book reviews, cartoons, poems, and daily quotes. We promoted Stoic events and Stoic groups. In our efforts to be of use to the Stoic community around the world, we are supported by a strong board that includes prominent modern stoics A.A. Long, Chris Gill, Donald Robertson, Massimo Pigliucci, Sharon Lebell, and many others. You can see the members of our illustrious board on the last page of this – and every – issue. We are grateful to them all.

To keep this journal independent, we had decided not to accept any donations from anyone. Yet, over the years many of you have volunteered to help financially. Although we did not accept such offers, we are thankful for those who offered such help.

We appreciate the support of organziations such as Stoa Gallica which translates an article from THE STOIC into French each month. Our thanks to Michel Rayot and Maël Goarzin for making our work available to the French audience.

The readership of THE STOIC is international. About one-half of our readers are from non-English-speaking countries and outside of North America.

We couldn’t have succeeded in publishing but for the support of our readers. So, for all of you, a big thank you. If you would like to support our cause, please let others know about THE STOIC. We would like to get the magazine in the hands as many people as possible.

Stoic journaling

As we approach another new year, it may be time to track our progress as Stoics. Journaling is the most obvious way to review where we have been, where we are, and where we want to go.

Journaling created one of the most beloved and most widely read sources of Stoicism: Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. This short journal, written by the emperor to himself, was not intended to be read by anyone else. It was the emperor’s daily reflections and reminders to himself. Fortunately for the Stoic world, this became widely disseminated after his death.

As Ende Harte points out, journaling was not unique to Marcus Aurelius. The other two major figures of latter day Stoicism – Seneca and Epictetus also favoured journaling.

Of particular interest is Brittany Polat’s new book Journal Like a Stoic, from which you can read excerpts in this issue.

Journaling helps us keep track of our most precious resource – time (Meredith Kunz). It is an opportunity to commit to your goals, monitor your progress, and spend time alone with your thoughts (Karen Duffy). Using a three-step process, Brandon Tumblin shows us how to use journaling to achieve our goals.

So Stoics have been advocating a form of self-examination through journaling since ancient times. Journaling reminds us what we have done right and where we can improve. If you want to learn more about journaling and its role in Stoic practice, you may find the articles in this issue of great interest to you.

I wish you all – our contributors, wellwishers, and our readers – a wonderful holiday season!

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