OPTIMISM.

Thames Star, Volume LVII, Issue 16212, 29 September 1924, Page 8

OPTIMISM.

By Frank Crane.

(Pearson’s Weekly.) About the most winning thing in anybody in the spirit of optimism. That means looking on the bright side of things. There are always two sides to everything, and whether we sed the dark or the light is very largely a matter of habit.

We all want to be liked, we want to be welcome, we want to be appreciated. And there is nothing in this -whole world that is more likeable and welcome and appreciated than cheer. If you do not feel well, conceal it as much as possible. That is not hypocrisy; it is simply consideration for other people’s feelings. If you are afraid, keep> your fears to yourself. If you are in sorrow and trouble, do not talk about it. Itemember that other people have their own fears, troubles and sorrows, and it is a burden to them to have to bear yours also. Nobody wants gloom. Everybody wants brightness. If you are a girl, you naturally want to be loved, and a good thing for you to know is that it is not always the beautiful girls that are best loved. It is the happy girls, those whose spirits are bright, whose words are cheery and whose enthusiasm is always present.

Nobody can help liking such persons

Optimism is a word that comes from a Latin word meaning “the best.” It implies thinking the best, looking the best, and believing in the best. And why not? None of us knows what is going to happen. Good luck may come, or bad luck. To-morrow may be a happy day, or some trouble may appear. And as long as no one knows, why not believe that the best will come?

If you believe this, it will make you strong and courageous and better prepared to meet whatever fortune tho morrow may bring. While if you believe in some gloomy outcome, it will make you weak and nervous and unprepared. We must remember that optimism is not a question that can be argued by facts. That is, no one can prove that things are going to turn out well, nor that they are going to turn out badly. Optimism is merely a state of mind. It is a point of view. It is a temper of the spirit. s

And if we take this constant attitude of hope,- and bright courage, it is going to make the world a better place to live in ; and is going to make us a better kind of people to live in it.

Optimism is a duty; it is a privilege and an advantage. It makes life easier for us, and in everv way we are better qualified to get along with people and succeed in our business than those whose outlook is always gloomy.