The Environment.—As we have seen, the brain registers every impression from within and from without; if the impressions are those of discomfort, gloom, darkness, ugliness, those things, being inharmonious to the constitutional working of the brain, do harm and tend to set up bad habits. First, the body must be healthy, and the environment good in order to insure a healthy, vigorous mentality. Too much thought and care cannot be given to the environment of the child, youth, and adult.
Careful attention must be given to the toilet. The quality and condition of the underlinen, the cut and fit of the clothes, all tell on the mind. It has been said that a man tries to live up to his clothes; hence, the uniform of the soldier and the cassock of the priest. Clothes are not only an index of the character, but they help to make it. The clothing that comes into intimate contact with our bodies has a soothing or irritating effect upon the mind. It has also been said that for a woman to know that she was properly dressed had a soothing influence on the mind, second only to that of religion itself.
In the evening, laying aside the business suit of the day with all the anxieties and dust of toil, and replacing it by a tasteful house-gown, brings a sense of freshness that brightens the mind and stimulates the appetite. The clothing should always be suitable to the employment, to the purse, and to the surroundings, or good taste is violated, and, again there is an unhealthy reaction on the mind.
To live in a gloomy house, with a dull ugly wall-papers, and no sunshine entering the room, may produce in their inhabitants want of appetite, interfere with nutrition, make them gloomy, unhappy, and hard to live with. While esthetic surroundings render life happier, brighter, and higher.
If one cannot afford expensive paintings to hang on her walls, she can select photographs of the old masters, neatly framed, which, placed in harmonious surroundings, elevate the mind, cause a love of the beautiful, develop the taste, and lay the foundation for a broad culture that will increase the enjoyment of nature as well as of art.
The Choice of Friends.—We have seen that the impressions conveyed to the brain-cells leave a fixed registration and are indelibly stamped there. These may be called the sensitive plates of the mind, and it is because of this writing on the brain that the selection of our friends and associates is a matter of such vital importance.
The subconscious mind, of which we hear so much to-day, does not originate thought; it can only elaborate and develop it, and the most important fact which has as yet been discovered in regard to the subconscious mind is that it is suggestible; that is, it is subject to moral influence and direction. A few words of commendation and praise brighten the whole day; if we can forget our pain for a little while, it is apt to cease.
All our greatest intellectual leaders, from time immemorial, have been unanimous in their teachings that one of the most important elements in the molding of the mind and character was the nature of our friendships. Tennyson says, “I am a part of all that I have met.” “A man’s friendships shape his life more than aught else, or more than all else.” The immortal bard puts it, “It is certain that either wise bearing or ignorant carriage is caught, as men take disease of one another; therefore, let men take heed of their company.” And again, “’Tis meet that noble minds keep ever with their like, for who so firm that cannot be seduced?”
Certain requirements and standards should be met, and the girl or woman should be sure that the individual, whether man or woman, comes up to the standards of her own clan.
A friend should be congenial, with similar tastes, opportunities, and training; frank in criticism, yet sympathetic in spirit; loyal and staunch in adversity, and one who disseminates an atmosphere which is broadening, elevating, and uplifting. Such a friend is to be desired and to be sought after.