The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1901-03-09
FITS OF THE BLUES.
4 Blessed Balm That Never Fails 10
soothc when One IL Low
Spirited.


The bluesl What are they? Web
ster defines them as "lowness OF spir-
It's" How they unfit us for our duties
Of the day; how they silence our kind
ly words and smother our smiles.
What a wet-blanket feeling they give
10 everything. Even the dog sinks
away, all his freshness subdued.
when he looks us in the face and
discerns our '"lowness of spirits" says
a writer in Ladies' World, New York.
We see a cloud upon our sky, per-
haps ID is very small one; some
times we feel II instead OF beholding;
just faint depression, little dismal
dampness, a forlornness we cannot
account for. We Immediately forget
that no life can be entirely cloudless;
we think we have all the trouble por-
toned out TO humanity; the spirit OF
gloom settles on us; we succumb, and
lol we have the blues.
Who hath cure for them? We
may take peppermint for our stom-
ach's sake, rub camphor on our ach-
ing head, battle our rheumatic limbs
with liniment and our bruises with
witch hazel: but how shall we min
lister 10 our "lowness of spirits?"
Let me whisper il TO you; or shall l
shout il from the house top? There
is blessed balm that never fails to
soothe, which is found in doing kind
ly deeds and speaking comforting
words.
One rainy day, no. long ago, I sat
at my desk vainly endeavoring 10
chain few words together In coher-
ent form. Whether IL was the awk-
ward material had 10 deal with, the
clumsiness OF my brain or the de-
pressing downpour outside. / know
not, but / felt my "lowness" stealing
DER me. Just then the small boy of
my household very timidly reminded
me: you said on rainy day you'd
paste some pictures in my scrap
book" Being exceedingly DESTROYS OF
wooing the Muse, l said: Don't both
or me now, dear" The child's voice
was obediently sllenced; but not the
far more insistent voice of my heart,
that firmly repeated the words my
memory had taught IT,; do some
thing for somebody quick" The pen
and paper were laid aside. the din
ing table took the place OF the desk,
and the ambitious scribbler was inn
mediately transformed into an inter
ested mother delighting ner little son
by gayly FASTING the gaudy punches
OF flowers, and the pictured birds and
animals into amusing clusters on the
white pages before her; laughing joy
fully herself as she brought sunshine
into heart too young TO understand
n "lowness OF spirits" but which felt
a detection not unusual on dark and
gloomy day,
There is never n time when we can
not find something TO do for some
body. 1t may be only TO write a few
simple. kindly words; 20 run across
10 neighbor with a book we believe
she will enjoy reading; 10 copy for
some acquaintance a poem we arc
sure she will like 10 have. Perhaps
we are using odd moments 10 make n
dainty gift for friend; IL So take
n few stitches on IL and see how quick
ly the gloom is dispersed. IL you sec
nothing else you can do, just sit
quietly for n few minutes and think
OF the pleasures you have had. That
trip you enjoyed so much last sum
mer, can you ever forget IL? That
bunch of roses your husband brought
home on your birthday, what a sweet
gift that was. Those endearing words
your prattling chilu lisps 10 you every
day, what could be more comforting?
Think and think, my sister, and still
think on till sunshine has banished
shadow and you can rise up with
sturdy will, turn your back on cloud
land where the Blue King reigns, and
go bravely forth to cheerfully meet
whatever the coming hours may
bring