Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-01-05
THE DAILY CHIT-CHAT.
By Ruth Cameron.
The mind is its own place, and in itself
Can make n heaven Of hell, u hell OF heaven.
Milton.

Milton.
Doubtless, you have heard many times,
both from other folks pens and mine,
the essential philosophy of the above.
It's the point Of view that we take of
our circumstances. and not the circum-
stances themselves, that does most to
make us happy or unhappy-dissatlshed
or contented. You have probably been
told that again and again, and, having
common sense and reason of your own,
knew 1T anyway.
But let me-or, rather, one of my letter.
friends-present this same philosophy in
a more original newer and more concrete
form. 1 think 1t will interest and amuse
you. as it did me.
MY sister and J." writes this friend
ARE rather imaginative, and when We
have nothing else to do We build e most
wonderful air castles. Sometimes we
merely draw exaggerated word pictures
of little happenings. One afternoon after
work we walked home, stopped on oar
way for chat with our married sister,
and when we got home found that the
rest of the family had finished supper
We ate ours and repaired to the porch
pumped down in the hammock and
Jane on the porch settee, piled high with
pillows. She drew a pathetic picture of
the walk up, describing the two poor
stenographers toiling weary miles after
a hard days work-the tall thin, angular
gray-haired one (my hair is gray, but
skirt that had seen better days. AMI a
white waist that she had spent many
weary hours embroidering = the sh IT.
dregged-out looking younger sis er in
similar costume She told how they
dragged their weary footsteps to thei,'
married sisters fiat, where they could
smell the supper cooking for her husband
when he returned from his days labor,
and, after talking for awhile. proceede
on their journey home. They sat Gown
To- hn foh 10 nd nor fnnE IF n S11Yn-
per of bread and preserves, a bit of ct
tuce. and some lukewarm tea, and then
dragging their weary feet to the porch,
threw themselves down in utter exhdus-
ton.
You must admit this tale of woe sounds
heart-rending.
Then, said: Now listen while I draw
the other side of the picture. The two
sisters. after leaving their offices, one in
bank, the other in mercantile Office
strolled uptown in the late afternoon
stopping en- route for a frappe at the Ice
cream parlor. The older sister, tall and
slender, with a mass of fluffy gray hair,
was dressed in dainty, well fitting linen
skirt and hand-embroidered lingerie
waist. The younger one. short. attrac-
tive blond. was similarly dressed. AS
the two sisters walked they discussed in
diligently Charles Lamb and Robert
for a moments chat with their married
sister. who sang them an aria from one
Of the operas while she awaited her hus-
bands Homecoming, In anticipation or
which she had prepared dainty sup
per. Upon their arrival at their own
home they sat down to a tempting sup
per of lettuce with mayonnafse, pre-
served peaches and fragrant tea ut
wasn't lukewarm at alb. The polished
table was bare with a drawnwork lunch
con square and bowl OF roses, and the
china was Of a dainty gold and white
design. 80
AFTER supper they repaired to the
wide veranda with the rose vines, avn
ings and rustic sofa and chairs piled with
sofa ri lows, and while one settled her
self comfortably in the hammock. with a
couple of feather pillows under her head.
the other piled the settee high with Pill
lows and curled herself up for happy
evening.
when finished we both laughed-the
pictures were so completely different, yet
both were correct in the essentials l
told Jane II Only shows what point OF
view can do and she admitted that she
was feeling quite sorry for herself when
she finished her narrative and that mine
cheered her up so that she felt quite
happy" ~
the time unconsciously making word pic
lures Of everything that happens to US.
wonder which kind OF word picture
YOU have the mental habit OF making
the kind that makes you feel sorry for
yourself, or the other kind!