The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1910-07-08
The Catastrophe
of Neglect
+ THERE is anything that most Of
-.-.l axrnrk NTH oil

ing. 1t is the kind Of event that we
| call a catastrophe. But our conven-
| tional ideas of such an event are of
| something so violent and noisy that
| we could not fail to hear its threaten
ing. We assume that we should know
one if we saw it. There are certain
tragic forms in which 1t sometimes
| falls. like riot or plague or disgrace:
but we are not willing to attend to the
less striking forms In which most such
happenings fall upon mems lives. The
worst and most far-reaching catas-
| trophe is one which nobody notices un
til it has done it's work. And that is
the catastrophe of neglect.
No man can be very wise or we'll
equipped for life who is simple enough
to suppose that our worst perils will
always come ringing a bell to herald
| their approach. No more can we take
our ease and trust that If there is any
thing very serious the matter with our
life, our friends m those who love us
will surely let us know of it. For the
hardest thing to get through anybody's
head is a realization of his worst fault.
The lesser faults our friends will dare
to speak of, as they sometimes do.
and we are quite happy to have gotten
off SO easily. We know that the things
they criticize are not fatal and may
easily be corrected. But the closest
friend will hesitate before telling us
that We are degenerating, or that our
whole level is lowered, or that we are
far from being the men we used to be-.
All this We must find out mostly from
ourselves and with the help of God.
Many a wife has ever before her, night
and day, the sad realization that it is
not this or that. but the whole spirit
and Utmost life of her husband, that
is deteriorating. She breads the out
look, but she dares not speak. Doing
no definitely bad thing, the husband is
neglecting the whole purpose of life at
a thousand points. Who can tell us
that our tone is lowered. our spirit
changed, our fineness turned to
c-oarseness through re~missness, no one
of which in itself seems a serious
thing, but whose total means that we
have become without knowing it diff
ferent men? We must find out for our
selves with Gods help how we stand,
and remember that more crises in life
fail to be met, and more tragedies &C.
cur, through neglect thar through all
other forms of wrong-doing put to-
gether.
Wherein Failure Lies.
1t is not through lack of power to
think up new things and make great
strokes of endeavor hat We fail. More
often it is through simple WEAKNESS of
doing over and over as long as We live
the very things that have most &C
counted for any success we have ever
had. Worship ceases from a mans life
because everything seems to be going
we'll and there is no trouble or dlsas-
ter imminent. If some catastrophe
had fallen upon aim or his surround
ings he would return to his worship,
1t is one of the must subtle cataS'
trophies when a man comes to feel like
that. Little by little, with a clear sky
and no clouds threatening, he does not
realize the slump and settling that is
taking place in his whole life. He
offers no affront to his Maker, but he
neglects him. One thing and another
may seem to go go on just as well in
his life, but his whole situation has
changed without his knowing it. Fol
a long time it will seem as If nothing
had happened. With a general feeling
of wishing we'll to his home or his
children, and just because they are al
ways there and the surroundings o.
the home seem so fair that no part1cu
lar pains or effortsseem to be called
for. he does not suspect the extent o.
his neglect or how silently cords arr
swapping between him and the best
life of his dear ones. Out of such SIT
uations come more domestic tragedie:
than come from anywhere else. Oh, l
when everything seems all right W.
could just make vivid to ourselves
: what it was that made them all RICH
in he first place, and do some more
, of lust those things! But 1t seems a.
, if with most of us things have to g
wrong before we will do the Simple
/. things that would insure their contin
, ned rightness. If the house has fallel
down.. we will do something; but tn
little attention which the house need
at this point which can be given IN al
hour or a half day, or at some otne
point where harm can be kept fron
happening by a very slight effort
these things seem beneath us. Ii ]
were something great. we would do II
but we wait until what is needed Is S
great that we are staggered by It
Let us drop all thought OF great ao
~yenturous things to do, and be conten
to do today and tomorrow the onl
kind of things that have ever put an
greatness into u.s. If day by day W
dread neglect and keep it from Greer
ing into the life of the soul and tn
performance of our task, we need nc
fear any great catastrophe.-Sunda
School Times.
Crow In Grace.