Marcus longed for what he called an unfettered mind, one not carried off by every passing fear and craving. He pictured the soul as a clear spring that stays sweet as long as nothing muddies it. Your attention gets pulled in a hundred directions each day, and it's easy to feel scattered and stirred up. But you can return to plainness. Set down the extra worry, the endless what-ifs, the noise you didn't choose. Underneath all of it, there's a quieter you that's still there, still steady. You reach it not by forcing calm, but by gently letting the clutter settle, the way a stirred glass of water clears on its own.

Inspired by the old idea of the mind as a clear spring. Written by Ugo Charles.