| Strength and Beauty |
Chapter 20 |
Page 4 |
The true problem of living is to pass unhurt in our real character through the greatest trials, and to have our life softened, enriched, and refined by every trouble we endure. Therefore, we have not met grief aright if we come out of it with a loss of joyousness. Our songs should be sweeter and our laughter should be gladder, if less hilarious, for a baptism of pain.
“Why make we moan For loss that doth enrich us, yet
With upward yearnings of regret?
Bleaker than unmossed stone
Our lives were but for this immortal gain
Of unstilled longing and inspiring pain!
As thrills of long hushed tone
Live in the viol, so our souls grow fine
With keen vibrations from the touch diving
Of noble natures gone.”
There is a mission for humor. The man who can make others laugh may be a great blessing to his fellows. There are times in one’s experience when a bit of fun is better, more a means of grace, than a serious sermon would be. There are times when the best help we can give to a friend is to make him laugh. The Wise Man says:
A merry heart is a good medicine.
A hearty laugh would cure many a sickly feeling, driving away the blues, and changing the whole aspect of life for a man. The gift of bright, cheerful humor is one to be envied. The man who can keep people laughing at the table is both a promoter of health and a dispenser of happiness.
Page 4