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Show Learns Most Important Lesson of Life from Lightning Bolt in a Summer Storm Verona Wylie Slater, a Penn Valley, Pennsylvania, housewife whose brothers are both authors reveals her personal creed. This is one of a series of statements prepared for broadcast by thinking useful people in all walks of life. The program is presented by Edward R. Murrow over KSUB at 6 p. m. Monday through Friday. By Verona Wylie Slater .matches. I thought of God as a tiousewiie My early life was spent in Presbyterian parsonages, where 1 learned a great deal about the "Thou shalt nots" of this world. In those days his parishoners' personal problems were often brought to the minister for settlement. set-tlement. He was supposed to be their spiritual advisor, marriage counselor, economic stabilizer and psychiatrist. Sometimes Father referred t conferences with his flock, saying he had been "wrestling with men's souls." In these mysterious giant referee, w ho spoke through father. My brothers and I held long conversations about what might be true or false on Christian teachings. One evening during a thunderstorm, my eldest brother was inspired to make an unholy experiment. He stood on a long sloping rock, which jutted out into the lake near our summer home. Holding his face upward, he defied the Almighty to strike him with a bolt of lightning. The storm was loud and close. The skies opened with a terrifying flash, but the bolt flew across the dark waters a mile away. We felt relieved, foolish, and very insignificent. I have felt unimportant many times since that night, and remembered re-membered with a smile the bolt of lightning which scorned the .parson's children. It took many-years many-years to recover from the idea (that God was a figure rf personal per-sonal vengeance. Now I think of j God as a spirit of goodness re-, re-, fleeted in sane human beings 'everywhere. 1 In much the way I look through the pantry shelves to see what is needed for dinner, have frequently taken inventory inven-tory of my thoughts, searching for a simple philosophy by which I might live. The status of women has changed dramatically in the last one hundred years. Today a woman may vote and enter politics, poli-tics, take a place in men's pro-, pro-, fessions, have an active business career, as well as marry and have children. In the early 1920's, when I was trying to resemble re-semble a flaprer, my own confusion con-fusion reached a peak. I longed to be glamorous and began to doubt everything established by my forebears. We wanted boyish figures and equal rights ' for women. Instead of taking on the attributes of men along with their privileges. I thing we j would have been far happier had we doubled our efforts to b? feminine. I believe we are stii. floundering in this freedom. My philosophy embraces three things I would like to be as a woman wise, gentle and bravo. To be truly wise would take more than one lifetime, perhaps uui aimevauie wisuom lmpuej the use and enjoyment of my five senses. I can observe. I can taste what is sweet or bitter. I am warned by the smell of smoke and pleased by the fra-1 grance of flowers. With my fingers fin-gers I may stroke the silken j hair on the head of a little child, j but these same nerve ends keep) my fingers from the fire. Feel-1 ing is the physical and psychic core of our being. Gentleness is the sort of kindness kind-ness which accumulates with, wisdom. This is a big watchword watch-word in my book. It is so easy to become an opinionated monster mon-ster after forty. With age, I want to preserve a benevolent attitude. Children need tenderness tender-ness to combat their natural savagery and to comfort them iii distress. A soothing manner is an important ingredient in any formula dealing with men; it lightens the tensions that shorten men's lives. A gentle approach ap-proach toward other women is a vital necessity if I hope to I accomplish anything in group' projects, and if I wish to have friends. The real value of gentleness is lost if it is not fortified with bravery. Knowing only the kind of fears a woman has, I cannot speak fr warriors and heroes ol history. When I am afraid. I am paralyzed and ashamed. iWomen who show a quiet courtage cour-tage in grief and disaster, women who do mountains of work without with-out flinching, and woman who plod cheerfully through all manner of emotional upheaval around them, fill me with admiration. ad-miration. I have to evaluate and control fear. In order to reason clearly. I must be brave. Sour-age Sour-age which is calm and constructive construc-tive is contagious. Rather than a monument to my own failings, I want mv children to be a credit to the socletv in which they live. All the wisdom I can glean, all the gentleness I can maintain, all the courage I can command, I want for them. |