The Family Circle

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LII, Issue 5, 4 February 1925, Page 61

The Family Circle

ROOFS. . The road is wide and the stars are out and the breath of night is sweet, And this is the time when wander-lust should seize upon my feet. But I’m glad to turn from the open road and the starlight on my face, And to leave the splendor of out-of-doors for a human dwelling place. I’ve never seen a vagabond who really liked to roam All up and down the streets of the world and not to have a home; The tramp who slept in your barn last night and left at break of day Will wander only until he finds another place to stay. .-Y gypsy man will sleep in his cart when with canvas overhead; Or else he’ll go into his tent when it is time for bed. Pie’ll sit on the grass and take his ease so long as the sun is high, But when it is dark he wants a roof to keep away the sky. If you call a gypsy a vagabond, I think you do him a, wrong, For he never goes a-traveiling but he takes his home along. And the only reason a road is good, as every wanderer knows, —ls just because of the homes, the homes to which it goes. They say that life is a highway and its milestones are the years, And now and then there’s a tollgate where you buy your way with tears. It’s a rough road and a steep road and it stretches broad and far, But at last it leads to a golden Town where golden Houses are. —Joyce Kilmer. DISCIPLINE. Probably nothing is better for boys and girls than discipline, yet parents refrain from discipline out of mistaken kindness. They are soft at heart, and it is not easy to hurt children. It is just helping them to grow straight and strong, in order that they may have the mental and moral stamina necessary to struggle with a pretty difficult world. But there is another side to discipline. It must be kindly meant. Boys and girls must come to feel that parents have some real interest in them other than a desire to make them toe the mark. A youngster should learn, through the personality of the parent, & /that he is not being made to toe the mark m just because it pleases the parent to have £%lm do so. He should be taught by much patience that he is given discipline because his parents want him to grow into a useful and successful man.

ILL TEMPER. It is not enough for us to pray for selfcontrol. We must all study the cause of irritability. If men would often go to a sanitarian concerning their health habits, they would find an answer to prayer in his revelation of truth. Men have been known who prayed for a good temper in vain until their physician prescribed eating less meat, for they could not endure such stimulation. So long as they ate abundantly of animal food they could not control the irritability; but as soon as they were put on a milder diet they were able to keep their temper. The physicians, by the aid of science, revealed to them the cause of that irritableness, and their prayer was answered. They were not unwise in praying, but they were wise in adding hygiene advice. It is quite in vain to pray for a tranquil spirit or a genial, hopeful spirit when the organs of digestion are out of order. Not that one who is suffering from sickness should not pray for health, but prayer is to be conjoined to hygiene. It is in vain to pray for patience, and then run heedlessly into those very conditions where experience shows causes which lead to impatience. OBEDIENCE: A NOBLE VIRTUE. Jesus humbled Himself, becoming obedient unto death, even the death of the Cross. For which cause God also hath exalted Him, and hath given Him a name which is above all names.” (Philippians 11, 8,9.) Some people talk loudly of independence and liberty; but a great writer says justly that, though the word liberty is often heard among men, it is the word by which the luxurious mean license, and the reckless mean change; by which the rogue means rapine, and the fool equality; by which the proud mean anarchy, and the malignant mean violence. Call freedom by any name rather than this (liberty), but its best and truest is obedience. Obedience, indeed, is a noble virtue, a virtue by which all that is good, beautiful, and strong in human character is nourished and preserved, and it is the only path to the enjoyment of true freedom. Hence, when God delivered to us His holy law on Mount Sinai, He gave Ten Commandments as a light and source of strength and happiness during our pilgrimage on earth, and He laid upon us the obligation of obeying His precepts. His yoke is sweet and His burden light to His true children, and if we desire to enter into eternal life it should be a pleasure to keep all His Commandments in a spirit of hope and love. Honor Thy Father and Thy Mother. Among those great precepts He has set one; “Honor thy father and thy mother.” By this Commandment we are bound to show our parents due honor by giving them all respect, love, and obedience. God has placed them .in authority over us, in order that wo may honor our Creator Himself in honor-

mg them. To the fulfilment of this Commandment a promise is attached : “That thou mayest be long-lived in the land which the Lord thy God shall give thee.” The same promise is repeated in another part of the Bible in these words: “He that honoreth his father, shall enjoy a long life” and again, “He that honoreth his mother is as one that layeth up a treasure.” (Eccles. III.) Our Lord’s Example. Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ has left us an example of how we should observe this Commandment, for He was obedient for many long years to Mary and Joseph. As the Eternal Father has recompensed His Son’s humility and obedience by exalting Him and giving Him a Name that is above all names, so He will reward children when they obey their parents and strive manfully to observe all the precepts of His Holy law. No doubt, when children grow older they will desire to have much of their own way. They will succeed in this fight against evil if they follow the advice of their father and mother, who love them dearly and seek to preserve them from injury and sorrow. Throughout the Ages. Throughout all the ages of the world, the noblest and wisest men were distinguished for the honor they gave their parents and for their obedience to the restraint of duty and of law; and we should be desirous to be of their company rather than be reckoned among fools and criminals. The Holy Scripture says: “Cursed is he that honoreth not his father and mother.” (Deut. xxvii. 16.) THE HOLY GHOST. There is only one way to restore man to his original state, and to improve the general condition of civilisation and the world, and that is to return to the guidance of the Holy Ghost, and to nourish our divine life by His divine teachings and inspirations. The reason why the devotion to the Holy Ghost occupies so small a place in the religious life of even Catholics, is that it is above all else an intellectual devotion, that requires some spiritual depth, and even Catholics prefer to have their devotions shallow and as little troublesome to their intellects as possible. It was not thus in the ages of faith. Souls devoted to the Holy Ghost should seek to make their religious life more profound and solid by this great devotion. FOR A CATHEDRAL BELL. I chime at eve and morn. I peal the happy wed, I ring for mortals born . And toll the blessed dead. When all my work is done, Then am I busied most In silence praising Son, And Father, and Holy Ghost! —Shane Leslie.

WOULD DO HER BEST. A little girl went to a party and ate herself to a standstill. She realised this, but an elderly and benevolent gentleman did not and tried to incite her to further gastronomic feats. Tempting her with a dish of pastries, he asked: “Won’t you have another cake?” , She eyed the dish sadly as she replied; “I could chew it, but I couldn’t swallow' it!” MR. BUSYBODY. In small towns no one’s business is often made everyone’s business—a remark that is especially true of love affairs. In one town a postmaster was curious to know r what stage the courtship of two young people had reached; so when the young lady came for her letter he remarked slyly, “Well, Janie, and when is the wedding goin’ to be?” “Oh, not for a couple of years yet,” replied the girl quickly. “Ha, ha !” exclaimed the postmaster. “Did you notice I didn’t say whose weddin’?” “Didn’t you notice I didn’t either?” replied the girl; and the postmaster rubbed his chin. THAT PRINTER AGAIN! The flower show had been a great success, and a few evenings later Mr. Blank, who had performed the opening ceremony, was reading the local peper’s report of it to his . wife. Presently he stopped reading, his justifiable pride turning to anger. Snatching up his stick, he rushed from the room. Amazed, his wife picked up the newspaper to ascertain the reason of her spouse’s fury. She read: As Mr. Blank mounted the platform all eyes were fixed on the large red ‘ nose ’ he displayed. Only years of patient cultivation could have produced an object of such brilliance. . .” WXW SMILE RAISERS.’ An Ad.; For Sale Patent feeding bottles for babies with screw tops. ‘ *? “Lost Rooks of Livy.” Headline in WestCountry Paper. Will they ever come home to roost? ' V He: “Would you like to go golfing?” She: “Oh, dear no. I should never know which end to hold the caddie,” ¥ Johnson patted Jackson’s dog on the head. “A nice dog/’ he said. “But why don’t you teach it some tricks?” Jackson was a man who lacked energy. “I’ve tried,” he replied, “but the dog won’t learn.” “Not much intelligence?” queried Johnson. “Too much,” answered Jackson. “I can gee by the expression on his face that the .dog doesn’t see any more sense in the tricks than I do.” - •*