isa-normaladvance-1915-00148

Description:	148THE NORMAL ADVANCEThe following is from an editorial from TheRadical from the American College of Physical Education on the effect of mental disturbances on the body.Now, this body, this machine, is regulated bya nervous system, and that nervous system isby far the most wonderful and delicate thingin the world. It doesnt like to be disturbed,and when it is, the whole body is thrown intoconfusion and distress. If you have ever hada dentist insert into some mysterious cavityone of those tiny stilettos that they employwith such easy nonchalance, you have not yetforgotten how sensitive the nerves are.Now excitement, bother, worry—they act onthe nerves in the same way, only they act on adifferent set of nerves not so closely associatedwith consciousness. We have all seen a cobweb.Suppose you catch with a needle point one little strand of the cobweb and pull it. Thenevery fibre of the cobweb will shake. And so itis with the nervous system. If any portion ofit is disturbed, the whole structure is throwninto disruption and the results may be farreaching and disastrous.Any mental disturbance upsets all thetythms of the body and produces abnormalitiesof function ranging all the way from slightnervousness or headache to sudden death.The only safety is in cultivating the powerof calmness. Only when the mind is in a stateof mobility can the body be right. The healthy,wholesome, significant personality is alwayscalm, not because he is healthy, so much ashealthy because he is calm.Once gained, all problems are solved. Thecares of every day, the bursts of irritability,the attacks of indigestion, the flurries of anger,envy and jealousy—all these you drop as a manthrows aside a tattered, outworn garment. Youlook about you at the crawling, querulousbipeds in their mad, frenzied scramble forpeace and pelf—you look at them with a wondering but kindly consideraton. What is itall about?Supposing the other fellow made that sale,and you close the commission? Supposinghubby lost the commission and you cant havethat new gown you have been teasing himabout? Supposing the children do get intomischief, and maid goes off in the middle of themonth ?Dont worry, keep your calmness. Make ajoke of it. Because if you dont keep calm, youwont breathe fully and you wont digest yourfood, and your blood wont go around as rapidly and regularly as it ought, and it will getall loaded with poisons too nasty and ugly tobe talked about on a polite page like this, andyour words will get jangled, and—well, a dozenother evil thngs will happen to the people whodont keep calm.It is all true. Only when the mind is calmwill either the body or the mind do its workproperly. So, if you would be strong, healthy,wise, beautiful, or any of the other things thatwe all want to be—develop the power of calmness.Work is not mans punishment. It is his reward and his strength, his glory and his pleasure.—George Sand.
Source:	http://indstate.contentdm.oclc.org/cdm/ref/collection/isuarchive/id/34970
Collection:	Indiana State University Archives

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