I now see clearly! Blessed
be God for the light!"
And after sound sleep, waking in the rosy morning, with the fresh air
from balmy fields blowing into your window, penetrated still with the
afflatus of last night's thoughts and reveries, wouldn't you be
cheerful? Wouldn't the unity of all things come to you, and wouldn't
you chirrup like a bird, and buzz like a bee, and turn imaginary
somersaults and dance and sing, and feel like cutting up "didoes," and
talk a little high strung, and be chipper with the lowliest and level
with the highest? Wouldn't your heart flow over with ever so much love
and gratitude? Wouldn't it infuse so much spirit into your poor, weak
life that your words would sparkle with cheeriness, frolic and wit? I
believe so! I know so!
Such was to me the secret of the fun, wit and frolic of the Brook
Farmers. The jokes were, it is true, largely superficial, but they were
inseparable from the position. The bottom fact was, _the associates
there were leading a just life_, and could go to their labor, hard
beds and simple fare--down to plain bread and sometimes mythical
butter--with cheerfulness just in proportion as they were penetrated by
these great ideas. They could make merry with their friends over a cup
of coffee, and sought not the stimulants that college days and college
habits might have allowed.
Pages:
211
212
213
214
215
216
217
218
219
220
221
222
223
224
225
226
227
228
229
230
231
232
233
234
235