ke a mental attitude of
wholesomeness toward it which will deprive the illness of much of its
power. Nature always tends toward health; so we have the working of
natural law entirely on our side. If the attitude of a man's mind is
healthy, when he gets well he is well. He is not bothered long with the
habits of his illness, for he has never allowed them to gain any hold
upon him. He has neutralized the effect of the would be habits in the
beginning so that they could not get a firm hold. We can counteract bad
habits with good ones any time that we want to if we only go to work in
the right way and are intelligently persistent.

It would be funny if it were not sad to hear a man say, "Well, you know
I had such and such an illness years ago and I never really recovered
from the effects of it," and to know at the same time that he had kept
himself in the effects of it, or rather the habits of his nerves had
kept him there, and he had been either ignorant or unwilling to use his
will to throw off those habits and gain the habits of health which were
ready and waiting.

People who cheerfully turn their hearts and minds toward health have so
much, so very much, in their favor.

Of course, there are laws of health to be learned and carefully
followed in the work of throwing off habits of illness. We must rest;
take food that is nourishing, exercise, plenty of sleep and fresh
air--yet always with the sense that the illness is only something to
get rid of, and our own healthy attitude toward the illness is of the
greatest importance.

Sometimes a man can go right ahead with his work, allow an illness to
run its course, and get well without interrupting his work in the
least, because of his strong aim toward health which keeps his illness
subordinate. But this is not often the case. An illness, even though it
be treated as subordinate, must be respected more or less according to
its nature. But when that is done normally no bad habits will be left
behind.

I know a young girl who was ill with strained nerves that showed
themselves in weak eyes and a contracted stomach. She is well
now--entirely well--but whenever she gets a little tired the old habits
of eyes and stomach assert themselves, and she holds firmly on to them,
whereas each time of getting overtired might be an opportunity to break
up these evil habits by a right amount of rest and a healthy amount of
ignoring.

This matter of habit is a very painful thing when