6. Be Proud Only of What Is Yours

Be proud only of what is yours. Nothing else will hold up. Epictetus shows it with a horse.

Do not be proud of any excellence that is not your own.

If a horse became proud and said, "I am handsome," that could be put up with. When you become proud and say, "I have a handsome horse," understand that you are proud of the good of the horse, not of your own.

What then is truly yours? The right use of the impressions that come to your mind.

When you use your impressions in a way that fits nature, you have reason to be proud. The good you are proud of is really your own.

What this means. Be proud of what you choose, not of what you have. Pride in someone else's gifts is borrowed pride. It does not last.