Montaigne's attempts

It’s the birthday of the essayist Michel de Montaigne, (books by this author) born near Bordeaux, France (1533). He became a lawyer, but when his father died and left Michel the family estate, he took over the property and retired from the law. He spent the next 10 years in relative seclusion in his tower, ignoring his family and society. His best friend had recently died, the man he would have written letters to, so instead of letters, Montaigne wrote down thoughts to an imaginary reader. He wrote about all kinds of things: liars, smell, prayer, cannibals, and thumbs. He mixed anecdotes with academic thoughts. And he called his short pieces “essays” because he considered the pieces small attempts at addressing big ideas, and the French verb “essai” means “attempt.” WA

He said, "The highest of wisdom is continual cheerfulness: such a state, like the region above the moon, is always clear and serene."

	Maria Popova (@brainpicker)
2/28/20, 1:05 PM Don’t worry about death, pay attention, read a lot, give up control, embrace imperfection, and other timeless lessons on how to live from Montaigne, who died (unworried) a long time ago and was born on this day in 1533 brainpickings.org/2014/01/07/how…