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Show i Setting Limitation, i B "I am Just going to stop saying 'I fl am too tired to go hero,' or 'It Is too much bother to go thoro,'" said a woman tho other day. "1 was rather ttnazed," sho went on, "In looking R ,ack over last year to seo how few M affairs of any kind 1 had been to. I f Just stayed homo oil day, day In " ' fj and out. I was invited enough. 1 was asked to go motoring times In- I numerablo by fr"nds. I wns Invited to Join theater parties. I was naked to dinners and luncheons and teas. Hut I Just got Into a rut of declining. 1 It always seemed too much bother. But it Just dawned on mo tho other day that I had not been to tho theater thea-ter for nearly n year, that n whole now set of fashions in motoring togs had como out aul 1 wns not nwaro of It; in fact, that I had boon sotting limitations for myself in a good many directions. I havo decided it Is not a good thing to do. This year I am going to keep right up with tho pro cession nnd enjoy every step of tho march, too." Why should ono sot limitations? Yet how many of us, like this woman, wom-an, do It, and In fact, aro doing it right now. Wo got into a rut of somo sort nnd thon when any project outsldo of that rut comes up, wo say "cant." If wo aro In business and a friend says, "lot's got to tho theator our "can't" takes tho form of "I am too. tired. And when 1 tay out lato nt night, I am sleepy next day." And so wo gradually stop Into tho habit of not going out in tho evenings. Wo limit life to work. If we nro a housekeeper and someone some-one wants us to go orf for a picnic or n motor trip, "can't" chirps up. "There's nobody to got tho meals," or "It's my duy to sweep." And our friends motor away to enjoy outdoors and wo slip Into a monotonous rou-tlno rou-tlno of housowork which when unen livened by anything rlso dulls our higher faculties. Sometimes tho opportunity comes tou Join a club or clas3 for Btudy or loading nud again wo set limitations ' for ourselves by saying, "Oh, I am too old," or "I havo no memory." I In somo way or other, many of us P H put up burs that shut us Into a llttlo f narrow wo Id, when thoro Is no ren-son ren-son whatever except tho limitations vve ourselves Impose, why wo should not havo a fuller and moro onjoynblo llfo than tho ono wo aro living? This Is not meant that ono should bo pleasuring or Idling to tho detriment detri-ment of tho work or responsibilities that aro ours. That sort of thing is In another class altogether. But thoro are thoso of us who might get much moro out of life than wS do, it wo did not sot these limitations upon oursolvos. And those limitations wo lmposo not only shut out much of the joy of living, but thoy affect us in othor ways. It is a well known physical and psychological fact that when wo shut ourselvos into our llttlo groove wo get In tlmo irritable nervous, or dull. Tho mental limitations wo havo set react upon us physically, Llto is an actlvo forco. The law of it is growth. And when wo try to stop this growtli, to shut it In, comproBs it, sooner or lator this unnatural condition con-dition will manifest itself in dlsor dor of somo sort. So asldo from tho pleasure wo aro denying ourselves by setting thoso limitations wo aro making conditions that sooner or lator will bring us troublo. Might It not bo well, thoroforo to lmltato this woman's example and tako a look backward to soo If wo aro forming tho habit of limiting llfo? Aro wo becoming content with tho rut formed by our necossary work and dutlos nnd rofuslng to stop outside out-side into tho larger world of legitimate legitim-ate pleasuro and dovolopmont? If wo find wo aro, lot's break tho habit before It gets fixed too firmly. Lot's accopt tho Invitntions that como our way. Lot's enjoy tho slmplo pleas-uro pleas-uro that can bo ours for tho taking. Let's oven mako an offort nt times, to add that to our life that will mnk'i Jfe it happior nnd of largor vision. , Barbara Boyd. |