Kahlil Gibran reframes anxiety as something more specific than mere anticipation. The future itself—uncertain, unfolding, and not yet real—doesn’t automatically distress us; rather, distress appears when we demand certainty from what cannot offer it. In that sense, anxiety becomes less about tomorrow and more about our relationship to uncertainty.
This distinction matters because it shifts the problem from “the world is scary” to “I’m trying to make the world obey my plans.” Once control becomes the goal, every unknown turns into a threat, and even ordinary decisions start to feel like high-stakes gambles. [...]
