Moral Letters to Lucilius Section 12

Ceterum magnae indolis est ad ista non properare tamquam meliora, sed praeparari tamquam ad facilia. Et sunt, Lucili, facilia; cum vero multo ante meditatus accesseris, iucunda quoque; inest enim illis, sine qua nihil est iucundum, securitas.

Au reste il est d’une âme généreuse, sans y courir comme à un état meilleur, de s’y préparer comme à une chose facile. Oui, facile, cher Lucilius, agréable même quand on l’aborde après longue et mûre réflexion. Car là se trouve un bien sans lequel rien ne nous agrée, la sécurité.

It is the mark, however, of a noble spirit not to precipitate oneself into such things on the ground that they are better, but to practise for them on the ground that they are thus easy to endure. And they are easy to endure, Lucilius; when, however, you come to them after long rehearsal, they are even pleasant; for they contain a sense of freedom from care, - and without this nothing is pleasant.