Living the Radiant Life: A Personal NarrativeJames, George Wharton
Religion
Living the Radiant Life: A Personal Narrative
James, George Wharton
Conduct of life
In the face of such facts one is compelled to the conclusion that
personal idiosyncrasy or individual preference alone can decide what it
wants, needs, and must have, in this large diversity that is offered
it.
The fact that ten men who have equal powers of observation and
reflection as myself love the things that I hate, and reject the things
that I receive, has absolutely no influence in deciding me in regard to
the things that I hate and receive, any more than the fact that I hate
and receive things to which they have the antagonistic feeling
influences them; hence it is useless for me to attempt to enforce my
likings and antipathies upon others, even as it is useless for them to
attempt to force theirs upon me.
So I have been led to accept the philosophy, which I wish to radiate to
all men, that it appears to me the Divine Wisdom has provided for these
personal idiosyncrasies of human nature by giving to us the extremes of
things with everything that lies between. So, regardless of my own
preference, I believe that the strong wind is as much a beneficent force
of Nature as is the zephyr; the thundering cataract of Yosemite as the
placid Mirror Lake; the avalanche as the snowflake; the thunder as the
violet; the earthquake as the rippling rill; the blazing meteor as the
Milky Way; the flaming sun-spots as the sparkling dewdrop; the fiery
volcano as the quiet glowworm; the giant sequoia as the tiny
forget-me-not; the thundering breakers of ocean as the gentle pattering
raindrop; the fiery boiling geyser as the silently flowing fountain; the
dazzling comet as the serene fixed star; the rugged Grand Canyon as the
flower-besprinkled sward; the monster whale as the tiny gold-fish; the
giant elephant as the timid mouse; the blaring trumpet as the soothing
guitar; the startling kettle-drum as the smoothly flowing 'cello; the
clanging cymbals as the seductive oboe.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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