A fellow said to me one time I’ll tell you a panacea for every ailment.
I have taken it for years and you don’t need a skilled Pharmacist to
compound it. This was the simple remedy: Trust in providence and keep
your bowels open. I thought it was a pretty good prescription and if
applied carefully you would never have appendicitis or a good many other
complaints. Of course, he said, some people ask too much of providence.
I hardly think it fair to ask the Lord to furnish you the land, the
patch of potatoes, a pail to put them in, a spade to dig them with, and
then get down on your knees and in funeral tones tell him you are out of
spuds and would like a mess for dinner with the jackets off. Don’t ask
too much.
It is better to whistle than to groan. It will make some heart lighter
to hear you whistle than to groan. If you can’t whistle a tune sizzle
something through your teeth, there’s cheer in it for some one. No
matter how worrisome, difficult or perplexing the problem is, don’t
worry or brood over it. Whistle if you can, sizzle if you can’t. It will
keep you from getting meloncolic; colic that comes from something
besides eating too many Colorado watermelons with the accent strong on
the water.
I’ve known people whom you’d think from all appearances they hadn’t a
care in the world, the sunny side was always exposed and unconsciously
they would be dropping encouraging words, doing kind deeds, lending acts
of assistance, and doing everything to lessen the other fellow’s burden.
They didn’t tell any one that they didn’t know where their breakfast was
coming from, but somehow or other they would get hold of some patent
breakfast food and eat it in its native state if no cow was at hand and
then they were all right until the next meal, luncheon, I believe is the
proper society word.
It never pays to be stingy with eulogies or encomiums. A little praise
has caused many a breast to heave with gladness and chase away gloom.
The cost is small, thank God it’s outside of the trusts. So don’t be
backward in using it at every opportunity you meet. If the sermon is
good, go up and tell the semi-paid man behind the pulpit, it won’t kill
him. He may be surprised, but keep at it until he gets used to it. If
brother or sister so and so has made a misstep and you are an unbeliever
or not, don’t break your neck in rushing to your neighbor and ah, ahing
it all over town. Let two thoughts get into your head at once and let
the better thought prevail, and instead of helping stain the character
of a poor unfortunate, make it your business to use your good advice, if
you haven’t any then keep still.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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