The Somerset reporter., 1909-01-28

ing the shell from which it was
If your body has ag d, it
is no sign that your spirit has aged,
for the soul knows neither age, decay,
or death. A woman should retain her
girlsh spirit, until she drops off this
physical existence; there IS no need
of anyone being an old owl.
To keep young there are two
essentials, change, and inspiring
thoughts. We often hear people say
"a change will do you good;o so it
will, and when we are unable to /
travel we must get the change at
home. Do you ever think that the
hairs of your head get tired of being
combed the same old way, year in
and year out? We must believe they +
do, for they get refractory, and in
sist on sticking out just where we do
not intend them to,-they are begging
for. Il change If a woman wishes to
keep young, she must vary the
routine Of life, do something different,
get a meal away from home, sleep in
another bed, put on dress she hasn't
worn for some time, eat something
she never ate before,-it won't hurt
her. Some people hang with death
like grip to every old thing they ever
possessed; it Is a mistake-it keeps
you old; give things away, clear out
the rubbish of clothes, furniture, and
also the rubbish from your mimi.
Give nature a chance; give G. I'd a
chance, who is willing to do for you
abundantly, to give you more than
you ask for or desire.
1t was law of the North American
Indians that after one of them died,
everything that had been connected
with the person should be burned.
They were wiser than we. Take any
article of furniture, chair or bed
stead for instance, it contains the
thought of those who planned it, and
made it, and is permeated with the
thought of those who have used it,
So don't keep things round that were
used by some one with whom you
were not in harmony. 1t rests us to
change our clothing; it also rests us
to change the furniture about in our
houses, though it may Inconvenience
the family
We need to be interested in things
thai are higher than ourselves. in
terested in matters that &rtain to
the worlds best good.
Think of Mrs. Weston's varied and
useful life. Her home, we'll ordered
and well kept. Her church, she the
life of its meetings, the unfailing
friend of the pastor. Think of her
being the constant President of the
w. G. II. L. for twenty eight years.
Think of her work in the Ladies' Aid
and Relief Corp. Her work for the
Clubs,-and at seventy eight Presi-
dent of the largest club in town. Ger
tainly we may say of her as was said
of Cleopatra, Gage cannot wither her,
nor custom stale Her infinite variety"
Isn't her life a lesson to you and
me? Should we ever say 81 am too
old to do so and so? We are never
too old to do anything we may wish
to do. Is it too late to learn?
"Ah, nothing is too late
TIL the tired heart shall cease To palpitate.
For age Is opportunity no less
Than youth Itself, though in another dress;
And as the evening twilight fades away,
The sky Is filled with stars, Invisible by day
A long life gives us the opportunity
to learn 80 many things, it teaches us
to look upon life in broader, more
impartial way, to love and respect the
good in all human beings, to be
charitable and loving and forgiving
to those who have lost the right path.
When | shake hands with some of the
older people in town, my soul just
goes out to them. | look into their
faces and read there what they have
suffered and endured, how they have
loved and borne up under the most
trying circumstances, for the sake of
their families, how they have faith
fully carried every burden that has
been laid upon them, how they have
worked for the town, to make it a
better town to live in for those who
shall come after them, and | often
ask myself "Can we be as true as
they have been?"
A life we'll lived unto the end,
righteous, full of good works, what
can be more beautifully Is it any
wonder that the Bible says of such a
life, "And thine age shall be clearer
than the MONDAY, thou shalt shine
forth, thou shalt be as the morning"
Can anything be more wonderful
than to be seventy eight years old,
and yet be as the morning?
Yet one at seventy eight p'ust often
look back over her life, and look at
it as one looks at a beautiful picture.
Mrs. Weston must often recall the
days of her childhood. father and
mother, brother and sister, and al
most as dear as these the playmates
of childhood. She sees the old house,
the well with its cool water, the barn,
the lilac trees, the apple trees, meath
which she played and gathered the
ripe fruit. She sees the old school
house, the minister who often knelt
in prayer in her fathers home, all the
tangible and intangible things that
make up life's environment. She
sees her wedding day, her life in the
far west, her new life here in the
east, her children, some here, and
some in that Ear away land, whose
golden sun we can touch not, and
from whose shores no voice calls
back. But if you should ask Mrs.
Weston today of her life, she would
look at you out of her clear blue eyes
and say, "God has been very good to
me.o These are personal things; she
looks beyond them, and sees the
growth of this little town nesting in
the valley of the Kennebec. She
sees, as in a dream, its growth to-
wards prosperity, she knows its am
billions, its hopes, she remembers
many faces that long since passed in
to that shadow land, that far away
land where so many OF our hopes lie.
She sees the state developing along
industrial lines as the water from the
rivers and streams turns the great
wheels that move intricate machin-
cry. She has NJ only seen, but felt
the great heart throbs of the nation
itself, as it has passed through those