Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-12-29

cendent work, saying, Il am the light
Of the world"
But TO have this real pride in self,
In ability, in achievement, in ones
possibilities, does not mean that
every other person in the world is in
terested in one. Not by jugful
AS you sit in the theater box, to you
1t may seem as il the eyes of the
whole auditorium were continuously
upon your colorful personality. Es-
pecially If you are a woman, you will
be sure of it.
You VIII fix your hair, and sit just
$3.50, in order that the dress may
hang just right. Your laugh will be
somewhat different from the one you
use at home, and, all unconsciously.
you will use the broad "a" in your
conversation.
The, funny part of it, If you could
know the truth, is that not a person
in the audience is looking at you
after the first three minutes. Not a
soul sees you as an. individual. You
are merged into the background and
into the group known as the box"
The box, to the audience, is a bulge
In the side of the theater accommo-
dating several men and women, in
assorted evening clothes. Your pre-
cious self, to old man Jones down
there in the first row, is known SIM
ply as that woman with the red
hair"
Such is life.
i: i x 4
There is, then, no real need for re-
garGing ones self as a shining mark
under perpetual spotlight. The late
Emily Dickinson has a little poem, of
the kind she was SO expert in con-
structing, in which she brought out
this point.
She said how miserable it must be,
to be public character who. like a
frog, never could get away from the
adrniring bog.
The very vast majority of people
in this world readily fall under the
classification given by Ingersoll, when
he said he would rather be a poor
peasant. happy beside his humble
cottage, than be that imperial imper-
sonage of murder, Napoleon.
Most of us. either by, fate or lack
of ability or fortune, are forced int
the happy position of the peasant at
his doorsill with his good wife and
smiling children by his side
Yet what do we do--whadda we dc?
We make an ina ginary public for
ourselves. We conjure every person
We meet as interested in u.s. We
wave our magic wand of unhealthy
y
realizes We are in the offing
Aboard the street car, IL two yol,n z
girls happen TO laugh, while looking
in our direction, they are laughing
at US,
Straishtway we feel uncomforta-
BILE. mentally curse the flsppers, won
der what on earth is wrong with our
attire. or what is the matter with
our new shoes.
We retaliate by fixing our piercing
gaze upon the damsels' shoes pro-
ceeding to make them uncomfortable
in turn.
Now the girls were talking about
happening that was nobody eIse's
Enthusiastically yours-and were
laughing about il. They happened
TO be looking your way, as they smiled,
but, honest-you We're far. far from
their thoughts.
Most of US would get a great deal
more out or life If we would assidu-
ously cultivate a certain Indifference.
We will be able to proceed upon our
mysterious way more comfortably if
we. will stop taking everything that
happens in some relation to our
selves.
No, resolve will do little good.
1t Is. easy to resolve. but hard to re-
volve after the initial push is given.
Realization is what we need continued
realization OF the truth by means of
our trusty old brain.
with realization, aided by deter
mlnation. comes freedom so that in
the end we Will be able to take as
our own those things which are ours.
ana leave the rest to fate.