The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1905-12-30
ON KEEPING A DIARY.
THE PROS AND CONS OF THIS
ANNUAL SUBJECT.
Should the New Year Be Signalixed
by Starting OneP-Reasons For and
Against - Extracts from a Girls
Diarv That Is Worth While.
ny KATE UPSON CLARK.

garding the keeping of a diary.
One of the elders always says: Don't
do il. 1t is time wasted, and n has to
keen it on his mind all the time, and yet
YOU forget it every week or two, and
then you try to remember n write it
IN to date. which leads to all sorts Of
mistakes and misstatements, and 1t
never will do you any good, at best"
One member is fond of quoting what
| Mrs. Whitney says in one OF her stories
about a book which has been made OF
the diary of a famous woman: How did
she ever nave time to have anything
happen, when she was doing such mon
strous days works in writing it down.
THAT is it," she says positively. Put
yourself in the way of events. The more
you shut yourself away when it isn't
necessary. the less time there is for
| things to happen"
Another, who has faithfully kept a
diary for many years, and has therefore
acquired a diary habit which it would
be hard to break, says: Don't fail to
| commence a diary each year. 1t is the
| only adequate way Of keeping track OF
your life. Read parts of it over from
time to time. and you can see how your
scheme of existence is working out.
| You are either progressing, or you are
| retrograding. Nobody remains station
airy for a single day. If you are candid,
your diary. with the suggestions which
come to you as o recall the happen
= $500 - -Naa.In to ~ /, nn=iYr fnr vOyy
You need not be retrospective. You
need not be wordy. Just put down a
brief chronicle of each days events"
The pleader for more room for the
actual" says that the diary is the grave
yard of the imagination.
THE constant narration Of the insig-
nificant commonplace must have an i'm
portant influence on the mind" she
argues. IF you will make your diary a
record of your thoughts-Only writing
when you haze had a vision or some up
lift, or some great moral impetus-that
would be worth while. But as for put
ting down: Got up. took my bath,
dressed. went to school. had a walk,
studied. went to bed, with trifing varia-
tons from day to day, how utterably
stupid"
Now all that sounds rather Smart.
One reflects: There is really something
In it."
And after hearing both sides. the
young people are more puzzled than
ever. One decides that at least diaries
are not fashionable, and being a devotee
of lie bon ton, that disposes of the sub
ject for her. AnOtheri is lazy. and a diary
Is far too much trouble. third. having
known personally of a lawsuit in which
an old diary settled a matter of life and
death; and having been led by this fact
to investigate the subject, finding many
similar arguments in its favor, buys a
page-a-day volume and puts down a
sketch of each days doings.
A certain girl has perhaps the best
diary-scheme of all. Her book is only
an ordinary square blank book. There
Is nothing cut-and-dried about it. She
writes nothing in it except what is sure
to be interesting. Her own personal
ICSlIuSo III pClSOAal h1CNO " STU
excluded. but whatever has happened
which is really interesting, she puts
down in a more or less literary form.
Here are embalmed the clever sayings
Of the children who visit in the family.
Does she go to a dinner? Here are the
anecdotes which were told there. Was
there a distinguished man or woman
$3.50 ~ T. gl -. -
her dress and appearance and conversa-
tion.- Has there been a spicy discussion
In the family? Here are the arguments
pro and con, put down with as much
humor as the writer can command.
A special stress has been laid in this
"diary," il this name is permissible, or
stories of animals. Every pet bird or
cat or dog which has shown any bright
ness, in the home or among the neigh
bors, is described in full. AS there are
many cameras among the friends, illus
tratiOns are creeping into the book.
Here is a specimen page of this girls
record. She is of high-school age only,
and it will be seen that she is giving her
self, without knowing it, a pretty good
training for future authorship"
September 10. Little Evelyn, three
years old, made us a visit this afternoon
with her mother. She dropped a book.
making a great noise. She a%pologized
In confusion, saying: L didn't do it.
mamma, it dooded ITSELF We passed
some fudge which we girls had just been
making. Evelyn asked her mother:
Can l have much?' She said: so
much, and gave her one piece. Evelyn
looked cruelty disappointed and asked,
with a quivering lip: Cant l have a
little mucher than that?' We showed
her a picture of father when he was a
baby. She asked: Why, was Mr.. Smith
a baby once?' Yes Were you a baby
once?' Yes. everybody was a baby
once Evelyn looked Perfectly be-
wildered. After a moments thought, she
asked: Who got the brekkis (break-
fast) them Her mother keeps no serv-
ant" -.
September Is. Our class in litera-
ture have just been learning Mrs