I had read an essay on Medium a couple of years ago by another writer with a PhD in philosophy, Sebastian Purcell. His piece, https://medium.com/illumination-curated/how-to-build-your-willpower-according-to-the-stoics-and-aztecs-4bd0fc59c421 , discussed another aspect of stoicism that resonated with me. He discusses Epictetus's view that willpower has three aspects, which Purcell describes thusly: "What Epictetus is saying, effectively, is that one part of willpower concerns the ability to do what is disagreeable, another part concerns willing not to do something, and a final part concerns knowing what you truly want in the first place."

That inspired me to write this full-of-tangents-essay, https://medium.com/channspirations/the-serenity-prayer-df758d99c956 , which included my repurposed version of the serenity prayer:

"Gods, please breathe into me the strength to do with serenity that for which I have distaste; the strength to say no to burning desires; and the wisdom to know that my path will lead to what I truly need and serene happiness will ensue."