There’s a ledger most of us keep quietly. The favors done, the credit not received, the thank-yous that never arrived.
Marcus Aurelius pointed at a vine. It produces grapes, and when the season ends, it asks for nothing. It doesn’t demand the world notice. It gets ready to produce grapes again.
He wanted to be like that. When you’ve done something good and someone benefited, why do you need a third thing on top? To be seen doing it, to be repaid?
Keeping score turns generosity into a loan. And loans create resentment on both sides. The debtor feels watched. The lender waits to collect.
Do good the way the vine makes grapes. Because it’s what you’re for.
The reward for a good act is having done it. Move on to the next one.