The Canadian Girl at Work: A Book of Vocational GuidanceWillison, Marjory MacMurchy, Lady
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The Canadian Girl at Work: A Book of Vocational Guidance
Willison, Marjory MacMurchy, Lady
Women -- Employment -- Canada; Women -- Vocational guidance -- Canada
The girl should learn as soon as possible that her health as well as her
appearance will depend on her taking daily exercise. She may suppose that
exercise is a dull tiresome thing which she is told by other people to
take, but which in itself has no interest for her. Here, as in other
things, the girl must learn to be her own captain, her own commanding
officer. She should give herself orders to take daily exercise. If any of
us needs a lesson in keeping well and beautiful, we can get that lesson
from our little friends the birds. Every creature, wild and tame, winged
and four-footed, takes the most scrupulous care of its physical condition.
They clean, stretch, brush, polish, until every feather or hair, until
every muscle and sinew is in fit condition.
We should think of our bodies as fine instruments which are given into our
keeping. The human body is the finest and most wonderful instrument in
the world, and it is sad and amazing how often we fail to take the most
ordinary care of it. There are different systems of exercise, and the girl
should find one that will bring all her muscles properly into play.
Five or ten minutes' exercise a day is all that is required. There are
many muscles which are not used in walking or ordinary play, and if these
muscles are not exercised regularly then that fine instrument your body
will get out of good condition and will not show correct and beautiful
lines. A girl should train herself to stand properly. A simple test by
which she can tell if she is holding herself rightly is to walk a few
steps on tiptoe. In order to do this she must hold herself correctly.
To have a good body, well shaped and in right proportion, it is necessary
to hold one's self correctly all the time. Habits such as these are not
acquired all at once. It is only by persistence day by day that the girl
will learn to walk and to stand properly and will find that her body is
becoming lithe, strong and healthy, an instrument which it is a joy to
use and which will make her appearance as attractive as it ought to be.
When anything goes wrong which we do not understand, it is generally
necessary to consult a physician. Special care should be taken to see
a good doctor or dentist, if anything is wrong with eyes or teeth.
Other aids to health and happiness are sunshine and fresh air, drinking
plenty of good water, useful work, good temper, and good times. To be
healthy and happy we must also give affection and kind help to other people.
Like everyone else, the girl at work needs holidays. Two weeks in the year
is a usual allowance; but three weeks are better than two. After the girl
has become a responsible and important worker, she will find two holidays
in the year a good investment for health, a short holiday and a longer one
of three or four weeks.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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