Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1906-05-04


went TO have my negatives developed
found that l had nothing but blank
paper. Then after the pictures have
been taken the Photographer takes the
negatives into dark room, where,
with certain acids. he develops them.
Then he gives TO you the photographs,
which you place upon your bureaus or
hang upon your walls. So with the
films OF the child's brain. The divine
sun shines upon them. The negatives
Will then appear. They are Gods FIRST
visions. but oh. SO delicatei They Of
ten can be rubbed out almost at a
touch. We had better beware how we
laugh at or denounce the child.
Selfish Parents.
And yet inevitably we heed but little
the visions of child of twelve sum-
mers. IF your boy, just entering his
teens. comes to you some evening In
the library and says, Father, l would
like to give my heart to Christ to go
out as a missionary to China or Afri-
ca" what would you do? Would you
stop and take that child upon your lap.
as though he was seeing vision from
God? Would you tell him OF the glori-
Gus usefulness which such life OF self
sacrifice would produce? Perhaps.
but I rather think this is the way you
would do: You would look up for an
instant from your book or ledger or the
manuscript you were reading or writ
Ing, and you would say: "Yes, yes.
child; yes, yes! That would be nice.
But run away now. Pepa Is very busy.
Run away" Supposing some day you
should find your little girl crying over
the story OF Little Nell" Surprising
she looks up to you and says: "Oh,
mamma, there is SO much OF suffering
and poverty In the world. would love
to give up my life as a Christian nurse
to work among the poor and the help
less" What would you do? Would
you take your little girl with you
through the slums and talk to her about
the poverty and the ignorance and the
sQualor Of a great city? Would you
bring her to such a place as the Hull
House OF Chicago and show her what
one young woman like Jane Adams
was able to accomplish for the poor in
the great human beehive of the middle
west? Or would say say: flush, tush,
daughter. You must not speak like
that. i do not want you to 60 and live
among the poor, but among the rich.
Nurses never wear diamonds. I want
you to go not to n hospital, but to a
fashionable boarding school. / want
you to be social queen and not to
bind up the wounds of the social out
casts" Ali, my friends, is that your
~ Of n f,arr
of the first visions of a possible trium-
plant missionary for Christ have been
suppressed by u selfish parent in Just
such language as 1 have quoted. Be
ware! BE careful how you deal with
the first vision of a child.
Gone Forever.
But there is still another fact rela-
tive to the visions of childhood to which
would draw your attention. They
may come to boy or n girl at time
when the parent thinks the child Is too
young to have any appreciation or any
thought Of his own. They may come
and go SO quickly that, like the hum
ming birds drinking out of the honey
cups OF n garden. you can hardly tell
whether they are truly here before
they are gone. They may come and
so ard after awhile seem to disappear
forever. but becatise the fulfillment of
these first visions may be postponed
for months-aye. Tor years-do not be
surprised or skeptical Those fi-st
visions of youth. IL they have been
welcomed Alright by the parent and the
child, will all be realized. They will all
be fulfilled IL they were true visions
from God.
Let me Illustrate my thought by the
life OF Jesus Christ. love to think of
the journey which this Divine Child
took to the capital OF his great ancestor.
King David. Jesus up to this time was
nothing but boy. IT'S true, he was
perfect boy, but he was boy, with all
the healthfui desires OF childhood. he
was not boy with the character OF q
girl. but a boy, healthful, beautiful.
noble boy. He could romp and play
like other boys. In the games played
between his companions and himself
have always thought there was no
laugh merrier than his and no rollIck.
ing Joy more full and hearty. can
never think Of Christ as a frail baby
or a sickly boy. Every part of him to
me was that OF n well rounded. perfect
ly formed child. He was n boy who
was the life OF his home, q boy who
was loved by every one.
Now. It was custom Of all the Isra
elites ordained by the Mosaic law to
attend the feast OF the passover once
year. This feast took place in the
springtime. 1t was a combination. if
1 might use the smile. OF our Thanks
giving day and Fourth of July. 1t was
time when the Hebrews assembled
In Jerusalem to thank God for their
liberation from Egyptian slavery. In
the spring OF each year from the little
village Of Nazareth, among the Zebu-
lon hills In the far north, the men and
women would start on their sacred pil-
grlmage. The children were left be-
hind as a rule on account OF the length.
the fatigue and the danger of the Jour
ney. Methinks can see Christ and the
other boys of Nazareth climb the hills
to watch their fathers disappear In the
distance. But one year Christ does not
mingle with the boys. He has come to
the sacred age OF twelve. This ia the
year that all the Hebrew boys are al
lowed to join the caravan. Thus as he
walks along with his parents l see his
cheeks flushed with excitement. This
IS most natural. Christ the boy for the
hrst time is going to see great city.
Christ the boy is going to the capital
or his country. Were you not excited
when your father, farmer, took YOU
to the city for the first time?
I'm the Temple.