The Washington herald., 1915-11-21
PREPARING THE MIND
FOR SLEEP
by oRIsoN SWEET MARpEN.

Not long I heard a young lady say
that IL was simply impossible for
any woman to look charming or to be
agreeable right after getting up In
! the morning. The Rev. DR.. Bushnell
declares that "a man must be next
! to a devil who wakes angry" The
way we feel when we wake up in
the morning depends on how We are
feeling or thinking when we went to
sleep.
II We retire with a resolve to get
square" with somebody who has in
jured US; IL we have hatred or jeal-
ousy in our heart; IL we are envious
of another's success, and II we go
TO sleep nursing these feelings. We
awake in a depressed. exhausted state,
feeling bitter, pessimistic, irritable
unhappy, about as nearly like devil
as IT is possible for n human being TO
feel The destroyer was at work all
night, running amuck among the del
icate brain and nerve cells. furiousiy
tearing down what beneficent Nature
had taken such pains to upbuild. Con-
trarily. when We take pleasant, kind
ly, loving thoughts to bed with us
We awake refreshed. in a happy, con-
tented frame of mind. Our sleepless
faculties spent the hours in upbuiId
ing, performing friendly Offices for US
during the night.
Few people ever think of preparing
the mind for sleep, yet IL is even more
necessary than il is to prepare the
body. Most of us take great pains to
put the latter in order: we undress.
take a warm bath. massage the face
with some sort of refreshing salve,
cold cream. or oil; we make sure that
our sleeping room is properly ven
tilated and that our bed Is clean ana
comfortable, but to the matter of pre-
pairing our minds we don't give a
thought
The quality of our sleep plays a
tremendous part in the quality of our
health, Of our success. and of our hap
piness. There are multitudes OF peo-
pie who do not realize this and who
do not get the genuine refreshing
sleep that builds superb health. gen.
crates physical vigor, and produces
the brain force that creates. Their
blood is in a state of chronic poison
ing because their minds are never
cleared up: their tissues are never
cleansed, purified and recreated by alb
solutely undisturbed rest. because they
never dream before falling asleep of
putting themselves into the mental at
titude that upbuilds and creates. They
go to bed with all the destructive
thought. enemies active, and then they
wonder why they don't sleep we'll, or
why they don't feel refreshed when
they awake in the morning.
II you wish to wake up feeling rest
ed and renewed. you must retire in
a happy. forgiving cheerful mood. II
you go to sleep worrying. depressed.
you will wake. up tired, unrefreshed.
with no elasticity of brain or buoy
ancy of spirit, for the blood poisoned
by worry is incapable of refreshing
the brain.
II you want to get that refreshing.
invigorating sleep which gives an
overpIus of energy, a buoyancy of
spirit which makes one glad to be
alive and eager 10 plunge into the next
days work, you must make a rule to
get your mind into condition of har-
mony before retiring. No matter how
tired you are, or how late you retire,
don't go TO sleep without erasing
every unfortunate impression, every
disagreeable experience, every unkind
thought, every particle of envy. jeal-
ousy; selhshness. Observation-Disclosures
from your mind II you have had
troubled, anxious day. unless you tune
your mind to harmony for sleep, there
will be a constant strain on your
nervous system through the night.
Even IL you do manage to go to sleep
with a troubled mind, the brain keeps
on working in the days groove and
you wake up exhausted. almost as I'M |
freshed as when you went to bed.
When you shut your bedroom door. |
shut out everything OF a business ma
ture. Just say to yourself: 81 have |
done my best during the day. Now |
am going to drop thinking, drop
drop planning, and get good. |
refreshing sleep to prepare me for |
work" Not only clear |
your mind of all anxious, worrying
business thoughts. but also of all i'll |
will or hatred toward another. Re- |
solve that you will not harbor an |
bitter or unkind thought |
of any human being, that you will !,
wipe off the slate of your memory |
everything you have ever had against |
any one; that you will forget what
ever Is unpleasant in the past and
start with a clean slate. Just I'M
agine that the words Harmony" I
Peace" Love-" Good will to every liv-
Ing creature" are emblazoned in let
tiers of light all over the walls of |
your room. Repeat them over and
over until that other self that per-
sonal secretary just below the
of your consciousness, be-
comes saturated with the ideas they
and after a while you will |
drop into slumber with IA serene,
poised mind. mind filled with happy,
joyous, creative thoughts
Copyright. isi5l