en the hearts and lives of their parents. How many times
is the mother-heart or father-heart grieved by the conduct of the
children! It may be that they are only thoughtless, or they may be
disobedient and wilful. Young people, cherish your parents, try to make
their lives as bright as you can. They have many cares. These are enough
for them to bear without your adding a single one. When you have grown
older and they have gone out of your life, you may look back with a pang
of regret at the times when you caused their hearts to ache. Brighten
their lives while you may; then when you look into the open grave where
Father or Mother is being laid to rest, your conscience will not smite
you.

We are told that "no man liveth unto himself." There is a circle of
influence about our lives that affects every other life that we touch. We
brighten or darken the lives about us. We lighten or make heavier the
burdens of others. Every unkind word or look makes a shadow on some life.
Every slighting remark, every sarcastic fling, every contemptuous smile,
puts a cloud over somebody's sun. Lack of appreciation has darkened many a
life. How much better it would be to take away the clouds, to banish the
gloom! You can do this just as easily as you can bring clouds. It is just
as easy to speak kind words as to speak unkind ones, and you will feel
much better over it yourself. You can encourage and help, you can speak
words of appreciation. When people please you, let them know it. When
people do well, or even when they try to do well and fail, you can show
that you appreciate their efforts. You can be cheerful and courteous and
kind. That will make sunshine for others. There are enough clouds in life
at best in this world of sorrow. Be a sunshine-bearer. Drop a little good
cheer into every life you touch. No matter what you are by nature, you can
form the habit of being cheerful and encouraging. Even when you have heavy
burdens yourself, you can be encouraging and helpful to others.

Do not let your troubles be mirrored on your face. One's face can smile
and his words can be cheery if his own heart does ache. I am not writing a
mere theory. I know what pain and gloom and heaviness are. I know what
burdens are. During the first few months of my illness every one knew how
I felt. My face told the story without words. I finally saw that that
would not do, and deliberately set to work to get the gloom out of my face
and out of my words. You w