Letter 691: I have not suffered anything like what happened to your shoulder, but my soul is no less disturbed than yours when I...

To Obodianus. (362) Nothing such as befell you has happened to me about the shoulder, yet I am no less troubled in soul than you are, as I consider the circumstances under which, having gone out from where you are staying, you sprang from the team onto your horse as being safer, and were injured by that very thing. But indeed it is shown everywhere how much better it is to have shared in education than not. For another man would have lamented, like worthless women, and that too without taking anything away from the misfortune by his dirges; but you have had recourse to the lover of letters' remedy, namely discourse, and you bear what has happened with the greatest moderation. And bereft of friends, wherever the race of men is, there is no way that you could ever be, so long as you are the sort of man you are; for you are a formidable hunter of the thing, having your character in place of nets. Whenever, then, your hand is able to do what it could before the injury -- and it will be able, the gods being willing and the physicians being eager -- run home and do not contend. For you have honored the city by your choice, but by the fortune of the outcome you were beaten back.

Ὀβοδιανῲ. (362) Ἐμοὶ περὶ μὲν τὸν ὦμον οὐδὲν οἷον σοὶ συνέβη, τὴν ψυχὴν δὲ οὐχ ἦττον ἡ σὺ τετάραγμαι λογιζόμενος, ἐφ’ οἷς ἐξελθὼν οὗ μένεις ἐπὶ μὲν τὸν ἵππον ἀπὸ τοῦ ζεύγους ὁρμή- σὰς ὡς ἀσφαλέστερον, αὐτῷ δὲ τούτῳ βλαβείς. ἀλλὰ γὰρ πανταχοῦ δηλοῦται, πόσῳ κάλλιον μετειληφέναι παιδείας ἢ μή. ἄλλος μὲν γὰρ ὠδύρετ’ ἄν, ὥσπερ αἱ φαῦλαι γυναῖκες, καὶ ταῦτα οὐκ ἀφαιρῶν τοῦ κακοῦ τοῖς θρήνοις· σὺ δ’ ἐπὶ τὸ τοῦ φιλολόγου φάρμακον ἀφῖξαι, τοὺς λόγους, καὶ διαφέ- ρεις ὡς μετριώτατα τὸ συμβάν. φίλων δὲ ἔρημος, οὗ γένος ἀνθρώπων, οὐκ ἔστι ὅπως ἂν εἴης, ἴως ἂν ᾖς, οἷος εἶ· δεινὸς γὰρ εἶ θηρευτὴς τοῦ πράγματος ἀντὶ δικτύων ἔχων τὸν τρόπον. ὅταν οὖν ἡ χείρ σοι δυνηθῇ τὰ πρὸ τοῦ πάθους, δυνήσεται δὲ τῶν τε θεῶν ἐθελόντων τῶν τε ἰατρῶν προθυ- μουμένων, οἴκαδε θεῖν καὶ μὴ φιλονεικεῖν. τὴν μὲν γὰρ πό- λιν τῷ προελέσθαι τετίμηκας, τῇ τύχῃ δὲ τοῦ τέλους ἀπε- κρούσθης.