The problem of life is to fill our days with sunshine.  In so doing we shall find that the “little graces” are those which will lend us the most help.  Tiny favors extended, words of encouragement, courtesies of all sorts, unselfish work carried out in an open manner, true friendships and love, a hearty laugh, a sincere appreciation of the other fellow’s struggle to keep his head above water, the conscientious carrying out of all tasks assigned us—­these are our helpmates and they are the products of our physical and mental equipment.  Through these we come into our knack of detecting friends among those who are the salt of the earth.

It is impossible for the person who desires good health to obtain it, or having it, to retain it, without consistent effort.  A watch will not run without the proper regulation of the mainspring.  We must keep up our activities.  We have taken the earth and are turning it into something to serve us—­therefore the need of fine bodily preparedness.  Nothing can take the place of achievement and it comes through physical and mental efficiency.  The one must not be neglected for the other; both must be cultivated and developed alike in order that each may help the other.

Happiness comes only to those who take care of themselves.  It is the natural product of clean-mindedness.  No pleasure can surpass that of a conscious feeling of our strength of character.  It is an all important element in men who aspire to succeed.  The man who rises in the morning from a healthy slumber and plunges into the bath after some vigorous exercise is prepared to undertake anything.  His world seems fair, and though the sun may not be shining literally, it is to all intents and purposes.  Thus, we go swinging along with a cheery smile, carrying the message of hope and joy to all those with whom we come in contact.  Oh! it’s fine to be physically and mentally fit!

CHAPTER XIII

SELF-INDULGENCE AND FAILURE

The correct definition of self-indulgence is failure—­because self-indulgence is comprised of an aggregation of vices, large and small, and failure is the logical sequence thereof.  Even the habit of eating may be cultivated into a vice.  Indeed, there are those who gorge without restraint, which in itself is unchaste and immoral.  We’ve often seen them as, with napkin under foot or tucked under the collar, they eat their way through mountains of food and wash it down as they reach for more.

No use to say how and what we feel when we attend such performances.  It is all right to say “Look the Other Way,” but it can’t be done.  It is human nature to gaze upon horror—­sometimes in sympathy, but more often in amazement.  Sometimes a well staged scene of gormandizing viewed from a seat in the second or third row center of a softly lighted, thick carpeted food emporium saves us the price of our own meal.  We no longer hunger on our own account.  Our appetite is appeased by proxy, so to speak, and we calmly fix our eyes on the “big show” and sigh for a baseball bat.