Living the Radiant Life: A Personal NarrativeJames, George Wharton
Religion
Living the Radiant Life: A Personal Narrative
James, George Wharton
Conduct of life
"I was not always what you now see me. I was in a good position,
honored, respected. Had a beautiful family, a good home, was the
superintendent of a Sunday School, the leader of a church choir, and
happy in my home, my church, my friends. But I was tempted and fell. I
ran away from home and all my responsibilities, and went on falling
lower and lower, until this very morning I vowed that the next fall
would be into the river or a suicide's grave. But God must have meant me
for something or He would not have taken the trouble to get me here this
morning. I'm going to try to rise."
With cheering words he was heartily and sincerely encouraged, with
neither rebukes nor cant. As he rose to go, he said, "What can I do for
you to show my gratitude for what you have done for me?" and he would
not take "No" for an answer. He was finally told he might mow the lawn
if he chose, and in telling the story, my friend said, with tears in his
eyes: "He was so sincere that he went over it four times. He really
seemed to have shaved, instead of mowed it." He was then allowed to
take a bath, and my friend fitted him out as well as he could with an
old suit of clothing. In the meantime a couple of hundred friends who
had been invited for an evening open-air social chat and singing began
to arrive. The organ was brought out from the parlor, one of the number
began to play, and then my friend called for a volunteer choir to come
and surround the organ to lead the singing. To his great surprise the
bathed and reclothed outcast gently sidled up with the rest. Some of the
elegantly dressed ladies looked upon him with suspicion and some fear,
which, however, dropped away in great measure, as he began to sing. For,
strange to say, though he afterwards declared he had not sung a note for
several years, the assertion of the purpose to live a new and clean
life, seemed not only to bring back the desire to sing, but actually
gave him back his voice. His rich clear tenor soared sweetly and without
effort over the voices of the others and then blended perfectly with
them in glorious harmony.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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