My friend, before you close your eyes tonight, ask yourself if you have confused your own clever planning with the outcome of your life. We are all too quick to wear our schemes like armor, forgetting that the final result belongs to chance, not to us. Do not let the pride of a good plan make you think you own the day itself.

I seek from you the humility to admit when things go well despite your wisdom, and when they fail despite your care. Consider how often the simplest minds achieve great ends while our most careful calculations crumble under the wind of fortune. If you can separate your will from the result, you shall find a peace that no victory could ever buy for you.