Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1917-11-28
Little Problems
@cMarried Life
~N~~~NNNNNN
By
WILLIAM GEORGE JORDAN
s4oLpINo MoNoToNY AT BAY.

MonOtcuy is the malaria OF matrl-
mony. It poisons the home atmo-
sphere, gradually exhausts the life-giv-
ing oxygen of love and comradeshlp
and leaves one sitting in an air OF dis
content, protest, and rebellion. IL
means dull, deadly depression OF splr-
its, general tired feeling regarding |
life, weakened hope and will, loss OF
appetite for the trif1es of everyday
living, a listless, languid Indifference
q nervous irritability difficult to con-
troll. It takes all the brightness ana
viyidness from the color scheme of life
and thought and leaves them a cold,
dismal gray. This monotony saps the
vitality of mental moral and physlcal
resistance to trivial cares and worries
that assume portentous proportions IKE
figures blurred into bigness by FOG.
It needs the fresh tonic ozone OF
change, the vitalizing sunlight of new
interest, the windows Of life opened
! wide for freer air and broader OUT
look.
| Monotony in married life is an in
sidious evil 1t is hard to cure but
easy to prevent. Husband and wife
should realize that it rests solely with
Ahem: the conditions are absolutely
within their control when acting in
unity and harmonyJ either can do
much, neither can do all. They can
create an atmosphere of comradesmp,
cheerfulness, and courage that def1es
monotony. 1t takes so little to hold
It at bay, in the beginning; 1t takes
so much to kill it, in the end. 1t is
easier to dodge a few snow1akes than
the wild fury of the storm at it's worst.
The secret of monotony Is over-ap-
sorrtton of the head or the hands
where the heart is not in 1t. 1t is the
dyerfeeding of one side of life at the
expense of the other; it is the pros
trat.ng effect Of unbroken sameness
In an environment.
The wife in her devotion to her home
NAV place a false estimate on tribes
She tray become house bound; never
crossing the threshold except when aD
solutely necessary, she may unconsci
, ous.y convert her home into a prison
and submerge the wife in the house
keeper. The amending repetition o.
| the same duties, this continuous per
Torrance without change or intermls
sion, begins to chafe and fret ant
weary her: it seems like the regula
tramtJ of a vast army on the marcn
continually passing but never passed
The deadly routine begins to wear o.
her nerves, like the irritating, Insist
! emf tick Of a clock in a sick room
The narrow horizon of her living dc
| presses her spirits; she grows faui'
| finding, dissatisfied, helpless ana hope
| less. The salt of life has lost its So
YOUR.
| She must lessen the tension som
way drop the whole outfit Occasional
| w. forget she is machine ana II
| mh,hber she is a human being, an
| GIT out for a change of thought an
| experience. Let her turn her steps
/ the green pastures Of rest ana resi-
! ration. take walk or drive, hef
s little music or see play, make
visit or entertain a caller, go sno
ping, that does not require money L
It is only buying that costs, read soii
hook even though 1t is only "one
+he best sellers''-anything that :"
freshen the mind, quicken the bloc
gladden. the heart, or put new eo'
on life.
Some people do take duty bit t
1g seriously. It is delightful occasional
be TO turn your back deliberately ana Il
nolitely on a duty for while, to 81
IA saintship little vacation, for the du
at does welcome you so when you re'u
a and it does not seem half SO MAJ
ng Much of our loyalty to duty is slml
disloyalty to higher duties ana Wh
1t- we are dulled by monotony, we do I
a differentiate clearly between the
TX There are honest, earnest, good WON
Of who. like Martha of old, are "cumoer
with much serving" They let
To house eclipse the home, creature co
at, fort overshadow heart comfort; ti
make themselves unfit companions
he themselves, much less for their n
ed hands. They should cultivate
he courage let go; they should real
red that monotony is never bargain, u
tho or worth what they pay for 1t.
OF There are other wives who nave
ak cares nor responsibility, no tax on u
no or energy, no money worries; puro'
ne ef housekeeping are reduced to m
he fmum by the help of efficient servan
nd the children are away at school. In
lie wives, too, often face monotony. Il
nst not the monotony of work, but OF II
ano ure
rse In the absorption of making MOI
ers. for the support of home and famll
. husband may lose the true persl
tive of life. He may become uno
anxious for more money; he may K
his desires too high; he may be
rificing too much of his real self IN
curing wealth. In over-absorption
I'll providing all that money can ouy
may forget the greater things
mere money cannot buy, forget
mere material things do not bring
NON. bopnineSs IF he goes home u