h has a brighter green, the trees have a richer foliage,
the flowers are more fragrant, the birds sing more sweetly, and the sun,
moon, and stars all appear more beautiful. "It is a grand thing to
live,--to open the eyes in the morning and look out upon the world, to
drink in the pure air and enjoy the sweet sunshine, to feel the pulse
bound, and the being thrill with the consciousness of strength and power
in every nerve; it is a good thing simply to be alive, and it is a good
world we live in, in spite of the abuse we are fond of giving it."

"I love to hear the bee sing amid the blossoms sunny;
To me his drowsy melody is sweeter than his honey:
For, while the shades are shifting
Along the path to noon,
My happy brain goes drifting
To dreamland on his tune.

"I love to hear the wind blow amid the blushing petals,
And when a fragile flower falls, to watch it as it settles;
And view each leaflet falling
Upon the emerald turf,
With idle mind recalling
The bubbles on the surf.

"I love to lie upon the grass, and let my glances wander
Earthward and skyward there; while peacefully I ponder
How much of purest pleasure
Earth holds for his delight
Who takes life's cup to measure
Naught but its blessings bright."

Upon every side of us are to be found what one has happily called--

UNWORKED JOY MINES.

And he who goes "prospecting" to see what he can daily discover is a
wise man, training his eye to see beauty in everything and everywhere.

"One ought, every day," says Goethe, "at least to hear a little song,
read a good poem, see a fine picture, and, if it were possible, to speak
a few reasonable words." And if this be good for one's self, why not try
the song, the poem, the picture, and the good words, on some one else?

Shall music and poetry die out of you while you are struggling for that
which can never enrich the character, nor add to the soul's worth? Shall
a disciplined imagination fill the mind with beautiful pictures? He who
has intellectual resources to fall back upon will not lack for daily
recreation most wholesome.

It was a remark of Archbishop Whately that we ought not only to
cultivate the cornfields of the mind, but the pleasure-grounds also. A
well-balanced life is a cheerful life; a happy union of fine qualities
and unruffled temper, a clear judgment, and well-p