Temperance puts wood on the fire, meal in the barrel, flour in the tub, money in the purse, credit in the country, contentment in the house, clothes on the back, and vigor in the body.

Moderation looks like restraint from outside and feels like abundance from inside. What you do not spend on excess stays available for everything else: the house warmer, the cupboard fuller, the body steadier, your standing with other people intact. None of that arrives dramatically. It accumulates in the ordinary background of a life, which is why it is easy to undervalue while you are choosing.

Pick the one appetite that currently takes the largest bite out of your week, whether that is drink, spending, food or hours online. Reduce it by a quarter and notice where the reclaimed money, time and steadiness turn up.