Parents should teach their children how to prepare their minds for sleep so that the subconscious self would create, produce something beautiful instead of the black, discordant images of fear which so often terrorize little ones before they fall asleep and when they wake up in the dark hours of the night. How often have we noticed the troubled, fear-full expression on the face of a sleeping child, who was sent to bed with anger thoughts, with fear thoughts in its mind after a severe scolding or perhaps a whipping.
A child should never be scolded or frightened, or teased, especially just before bedtime. It should be encouraged to fall asleep in its sweetest, happiest mood, in the spirit of love. Then its sleeping face will reflect the love spirit and the child will awaken in the same spirit, as though it had been talking with angels while it slept.
Children are peculiarly susceptible to the influence of our thoughts, our suggestions to them during sleep. Their character can be molded to a great extent, their ability developed, their faults eradicated, and their weak points strengthened during sleep. In some ways the suggestions made to them in that state have more effect than those made to them when awake, because while the objective mind often scatters and fails to reproduce what is presented to it, the subjective mind gradually absorbs and reflects every suggestion. Many mothers have found this true, especially in correcting bad habits which seemed almost impossible to reach while the children were awake.
If you want to make your child beautiful in character, in disposition, in person, think beautiful thoughts into its mind as it falls asleep; speak to it of beautiful things while it sleeps. I believe the time will come when much of the child's training will be effected during sleep. Its æsthetic faculties, the love of music, of art, of all things noble and beautiful, special talents, and latent possibilities of all kinds will be developed through suggestion.
In the marvelous interior creative forces lies the great secret of life, and blessed is he who findeth it. Doubly blessed is he who findeth it at the start of life.
CHAPTER XV
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
We do not count a man's years until he has nothing else to count.
R. W. Emerson.