The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1914-06-19
WHY NOT LEARN
HOW TO PLAY
Something for the Workaday Amer
lean TO Note

Courtesy of Pictorial Review
AS a nation, we Americans do not
know how to take pleasure-to amusc
ourselves. We take our pleasure,
like our work, too seriously. We 20
to extremes; we make hard work of
our vacations. If we can't play ter
rlbly hard. and after the same fash
ion of our neighbors who are better
off, we won't play at all. Some of
us are so afraid we won't play in the
right way--in the fashionable way
that we just give up trying altogeth-
err, Then our bodies, and our minds,
and our souls--pay the price of be-
ing denied relaxation and pleasure.
\ clever Englishman said to the
writer not long ago-"iou make
haste. even in your amuscments, so
they lack spontaneity and gaiety. You
really can't enjoy II dinner, don't you
know, when you race to 1t in tax
icab with your open watch in your
hand You are so afraid Of missing
something at dance that you never
sit out a dance. You work just as
hard as the paid musicians. When |
ask an American woman to sit out
dance with me, that | may enjoy
her conversation, she accedes gra-
ciously, but she thinks | am not get
ting my moneys worth"
We can't take the pleasure nearest
our hand. We reach out for the
pleasures which some other fellow can
afford better than we. We try to
find pleasure in the things we can't
| pay for.
Now, there's Bill Graham. You
may not recognize him by his name,
but he lives in your town. Bill loves
the water, so does Bills wife. When
Bill was counting her, he used to hire
row boat or canoe, and she would
steer their craft into shaddowy cor
ners Of the lake, where the sunlight
would dart through a lace work of
leaves and fling wonderful lights in
her hair. Bill proposed to her in one
of those shaddowy hooks. And he
hasn't got over the sentiment for n
row boat to this day.
hired boat now? Not much! lie
would recall that one of his business
rivals owned n motor-boat OF high
power, and she would remember that
she Jaw her servant taking boat
ride with the grocer's clerk last Sun
| day.
Ne, decidedly it won't do for them
to 20 rowing! They must wait till
Bill can buy a motor boat So Bill
work. nights or acquires a round doz-
en- Of wrinkles by taking a long
chance i'm his business, and Bill's wife
contents herself by sitting on porch
Of fashionable summer hotel for
two weeks, worrying herself to fraz-
zlc because she hasn't so many dress
cs rs her neighbor.
And those late afternoons when
Bill might close his desk, and with
Mrs, Bin in a simple wash dress. row
back TO the shaddowy pool with its
mystery of wood and water life, and
its memories of the sweet hcarting
days. There he would find rare color
ing, green and gray and gold, which
no artist can paint; murmurings and
cummings Of birds and insects which
| no composer has ever reproduced
odor and air which WOO the sleep that
worry has banished.
But, no, that wouldn't do. It's too
| small, too inconspicuous, too ineXpen-
sive a pleasure for the average Amer
| lean to enjoy. He would not be out
clusaing his fellowmcn-exccpt in
commitment. And what pray, is that,
in this day and age?