All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.

One of the most beloved lines from J.R.R. Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is this bit of wisdom, imparted from the wizard Gandalf to the young hobbit Frodo. In the first book, 1954’s “The Fellowship of the Ring,” Frodo inherits a cursed ring and realizes he must take a frightening journey to destroy it. After confiding to Gandalf that he wishes the task had fallen to someone else, the wizard reminds Frodo that no one gets to dictate what challenges they face. Rather than lamenting unavoidable hardships, time is better spent focusing on the choices within our control, and making our time on Earth (or Middle-Earth) meaningful.