10. If something appealed to me, I did it. I allowed myself to have any pleasure I wanted, since I found pleasure in my work. This was my reward for all my hard work.
11. But when I turned to look at all that I had accomplished and all the hard work I had put into it, I saw that it was all pointless. ⌊It was like⌋ trying to catch the wind. I gained nothing ⌊from any of my accomplishments⌋ under the sun.
12. Then I turned ⌊my attention⌋ to experience wisdom, madness, and foolishness. For instance, what can the man who replaces the king do? Only what has already been done.
13. But I saw that wisdom has an advantage over foolishness as light has an advantage over darkness.
14. A wise person uses the eyes in his head, but a fool walks in the dark. But I have also come to realize that the same destiny waits for both of them.
15. I thought to myself, “⌊If⌋ the destiny that waits for the fool waits for me as well, then what is the advantage in being wise?” So I thought that even this is pointless.
16. Neither the wise person nor the fool will be remembered for long, since both will be forgotten in the days to come. Both the wise person and the fool will die.