Talks to boys and girls: Kite talks, Random talks, The life I ought to live

Contents

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I. Kite Talks n

II. Random Talks 47

II The Cord That Binds

And above all these things put on love, which is the bond of perfection. — Col. j: 14.

After getting the sticks ready, the next step in the making of a kite is to put them in position and bind them with a cord. In order to have the cord hold tight, it will be best to cut a notch in the ends of the sticks.

But why a cord? Why not use other sticks? Sticks will do for the backbone, but to bind the parts of the frame together, something lighter, something that is strong and yet will give a little before the wind, is better.

Now take a short piece of cord, wrap it around where the sticks cross at the center. Tie it tight. There, that will do nicely. Next take a long piece of cord and run it carefully around the ends. See that it does not slip off. Make it taut. Tie it securely — a sailor's knot will be best. That will do.

The second step in the making of a kite has been taken.

The cord that binds plays a very important part. The three sticks would soon fall apart without it. The cord looks to be rather unimportant. It will soon be all covered up, and one who did not know would be apt to say that the cord was a useless part of the kite. If you cut it, however, or slipped it off one of the ends, little by little the sticks would loosen and get out of position, the paper would tear, and soon the kite would fall to the ground.

What do I mean by the cord? You remember the frame or foundation of a boy or girl who wants to rise in the world is made up of Will, Intellect, and Heart, well-trained and properly-proportioned, disciplined, and related. The cord that binds them together and strengthens them is Love. I have this from Paul, where he calls Love the "bond of perfection.' ' Love is what completes the foundation to make a perfect man.

You would like to know what Love is? Take your knife and cut off an inch of the piece of string. Rub it between your thumb and first finger until it falls apart. You see, what looked like one cord is made up of hundreds of little strands. The same is true of Love.

It is not any one thing. It is a hundred things twisted together. It is made of obedience and thoughtfulness, and politeness, and courtesy, and forgiveness, and reverence, and truthfulness, and sacrifice, and unselfishness, and so on. There are also many kinds of obedience and thoughtfulness; so that Love, like the cord, is composed of thousands of tiny threads all twisted and run together into one strong cord.

Love does two things, just as the cord does: (a) it binds the parts together into the strength of fellowship; (b) it completes the foundation for a useful life.

First, Love binds the Intellect and Heart and Will together. They do not live unto themselves, in selfishness. Sometimes the Intellect says, "I will have nothing to do with the Heart." Feeling shall not enter at all into my life. That is like cutting the cord. Both are losers, and it is a great injury to the life. Or, suppose the Will says, "I will have nothing to do with the Intellect; I will not be governed by reason, but by my feelings." It is a disaster again. They all need one another. Love is the cord that binds them together. Where they cross each other, at the center, and when the winds tend to pull them apart, Love holds them together. And out at the very tipends, where they incline to be for themselves, Love carries a cord from one end to the other, on which go messages of need and comfort and strength.

Second, Love completes the foundation for a useful life. Often there is a splendid frame for a glorious life, — bright intellect, strong determination, but little attention has been paid to the cord that binds. The life starts up on its career. The cord is weak, or it slips off the end. Then the paper, or outside life, begins to sag. A gust of wind makes the life reel. Then comes a gust that tears a hole. The Will wobbles; the Heart weakens. There is a fall. A life has collapsed. So, be sure that the inner, hidden cord of Love is wellwoven and tightly fastened to the frame. The future depends upon it. Love is the cord that binds the parts of the frame together.

Love is the cord that transmits power in time of need from one part to the other. It is the cord that quickly carries strength to the weakest part. Is the Will threatened? There is flashed from the Intellect and Heart power to sustain. Is the Intellect growing weak and weary? Reserves are sent from the Will and Heart, along the cord of Love. Is the Heart depressed and lonely? Will and Intellect send messages of cheer. Love is the nervous system that joins the skeleton to the living body; it is the cord that is the "bond of perfection."

Ill THE PAPER THAT COVERS

By works was faitli made perfect.— Ja s. 2: 22.

The next step in making a kite is to cover the frame with paper. The sticks having been firmly bound together and strengthened by the cord running from end to end, lay the frame down flat upon the table. Underneath the frame slip a sheet of paper, light and strong. Then cut the paper a little larger (say an inch) than the frame. Next, turn the edges over the cord and securely paste them down to the paper on the inside. After standing a few minutes to dry, the kite is ready for its tail.

There are one or two things I might say about the paper. It is absolutely necessary. Without the paper, the kite would fall flat. It may not be as important as the cord or the sticks, but who can tell which is the most important, when all are necessary? Is the mainspring, or the wheel, or the face of a watch, or the key that winds it, the most important? All are necessary.

The paper must be cut larger than the frame.

If I should stand the kite up against the wall, what would you see? Only the paper. The sticks and the string are hidden behind it.

I am ready now to tell you what the paper represents in the building of character, in the making of a man. It is the Outer Life, — that which men see when they look at us.

Do you remember that Paul once said that to make the right kind of a man there must be "faith," an Inner Life of obedience to God? That Inner Life is the sticks and cord. Then James spoke up and said that to make the right kind of a man there must be "works," an Outer Life, "to make faith perfect." They are both right. There cannot be the right kind of a man made without faith and works, — without the frame and the paper.

The paper is our Outer Life — the work we do with our hands and feet and tongues.

The amount one does, or the size of this Outer Life, depends upon the size of the frame. If a boy or girl has a small Intellect, or small Will, or small Heart — if he was cut out of a short stick — the Outer Life will be correspondingly small. But if he has been cut out of a long, straight-grained board, has great caliber, the Outer Life must be large. The kite-maker requires of each according to his ability.

A kite of small size, perfectly jointed, securely bound, and fully covered with paper, will fly higher, however, than a kite of large dimensions whose sticks are only half-covered. It is so with men. Many a boy of small intellectual power, small frame, has gone up higher in the world than his chum who had a far better equipment. It was because he had made the most of himself.

It makes little difference what the color of the paper is, so it is strong and large enough. It may be white, or black, or yellow, or red. It may be the Evening News or the Cleveland Leader. The kite made from the newspaper may fly better and higher than the highly decorated kite. It is so with man. His color makes no difference. He may be engaged in a very ordinary work, may be a day-laborer, yet if his life-work is well done and is as large as God-appointed bounds — each according to his ability— he will hear, "Well done!"

The Outer Life must be generously cut according to the Inner, — with a little to spare,.

A successful man always does more than is demanded. He outstretches even the boundaries of Duty and Love. He works five minutes over time rather than five minutes under. * Here is a "don't-care" girl. She is like a kite whose paper has been carelessly pasted upon the frame. There will soon be a tear. Here is a "lazy" boy. He is like a kite whose frame is only half-covered with paper. He will never get up high. Here is a "lie" boy. He is like a kite whose paper is rotten. He will have a heavy fall some day. Here is a "bad-tempered" boy. He is like a kite which is being pricked full of pin-holes. Some day it will be torn wide open.

The Outer Life must be strong and consistent. If a hole is made by some accident or carelessness, do not be discouraged; patch it before it gets larger. If the Outer Life is destroyed, take courage and a new one will come. Though the outer man perish, it will be renewed. Be true and upright, knowing that men will judge you by your deeds and that your success will depend upon your being sincere and honest.

IV The Tail That Pulls Down

YET

They shall mount up with wings as eagles. — Is a. 40: 31.

The kite is now nearly finished. After the paper has been put on, it looks as if there were very little left to do, yet what the boys call "the tail" must be attached.

There are two or three things to observe in the making of the tail.

One can never quite tell how much of a tail is needed until he tries to fly the kite; so he must be ready to add to or take from, after having "a try" with the kite.

More tail is needed when a strong wind is blowing, so it is wise to have some extra bits of paper or strips of cloth in the pocket for emergencies.

The tail must be fastened securely to the frame. It would not do to tie it to the paper or even to fasten it to the cord that runs around the frame, but it ought to be tied to a strong cord which is securely fastened to the two upright sticks of the frame — and fastened about two inches from the lower end of these sticks.

One who was ignorant of kite-making would think that the tail was quite useless, in fact in the way, and a burden. "What a nuisance the tail is," he would say, "pulling down the kite and catching in the tree-tops! Far better it would be to take the paper and paste it on the kite or even throw it away." Yet the kite-maker smiles and answers, "What seems to pull the kite down is really what lifts it up. The tail is in reality the wings that make the kite fly. You might as well talk about cutting the wings from a bird because they are heavy."

We go out to try our kite. At first it has no tail. What happens? It goes up a few feet, then suddenly flops over and darts head-first upon the ground. The sticks quiver, and lucky you are if the paper is not torn. Try again; again it darts to the ground. Now fasten a tail on. If it is the right kind, the kite begins to rise until perhaps it touches the clouds. And all the difference is in the tail? Yes. What looked like a burden was really a wing.

But what has the tail of a kite to do with success in life? Much, every way. It would seem to be unnecessary, — a burden, a weight, a restraint, — but it is really what lifts up.

Let us now make "the tail" that must be fastened to our lives in order to succeed, to rise in life.

In the first place, there should be a long cord — or "backbone" of the tail — on which to fasten the different parts. This cord is similar to the cord that runs around the frame holding the sticks together, i.e., it is made of the same material but is generally larger and stronger. This cord is made up of many strands and fibers, — thousands of them. Some of the more prominent strands are Love, Faith, Hope, Obedience, Forgiveness, Duty, Purity, etc.

This "backbone" cord must be fastened to the frame, not to our Outside Life — for it would tear out — but must take hold of us at the very foundation, must be a part of us.

On the long "backbone" I will first fasten a "wing," called the home. Here is where a boy finds his first restraint. He thinks he is held down. How foolishly anxious a boy is at some time in his life to break away from home restraints, to run away. Many a boy has tried it, but quickly over he flops and darts to the ground. Do you see those men and women — hundreds of them — who have risen in life? Hear them talk: "It was the home restraints that saved me from failure. I owe it all to father and mother, who made me mind, made me work." No one can rise in life without early discipline in the home.

Let me next fasten this hatchet on the

"backbone." That represents work. Ask that great man .flying high above the heads of the people how he got up so high. Listen: "I was made to work, to cut my way through life." Boys and girls often hate the very sight of work. But work is a "wing." It seems to be a burden and a curse, but it helps to rise.

After the home comes the school. What a restraint the school seems to be, so like a prison at times! How the boys and girls long for vacation! How they turn their eyes out the windows to the ball-ground and skatingpond! How dry a lesson is beside a party! What boy or girl hasn't felt at times like running away from school? How anxious to leave school! But see that young man. He has risen to quite a height. All at once he makes a lunge downward. Hear him groan: "Oh, that I had only stayed in school!" See that man quite well up — but he sees hundreds higher up. "Oh, that I had only used my school opportunities! I might then be soaring far higher than now."

The school is one of the "wings" by which we go up. Teachers exercise great restraint. They say "don't" and "do." They hold the rod over us and discipline us. It is study in the forenoon, in the afternoon. They spur us on, whip us up. They give us tasks and burdens. But listen to these men and women who have gotten up in the world, "Thank God for my teachers!" they say.

There is another "wing" to be fastened to the tail before the kite may be said to be finished. It is a "wing" that many omit, and its omission is the occasion of many failures. It is the church. The value of this "wing" to the tail is seen, especially in heavy, adverse winds and in the higher air. There are many boys and girls who will stand quietly while the burdens of home and school are being tied on, who grow restless and try to cut loose from the church.

When my grandfather, with other New Engenders, came to Ohio, they built three institutions: first, the home; second, the school-house; third, the church. They could not get along without any of them.

Down in Plymouth, Massachusetts, in the museum, you will find three things — a cradle, a spelling-book, and a Bible. Our fathers believed that the hand that rocked the cradle rules the world. They also believed that without learning all their liberties would perish. They believed also that a godless nation is lost. This is their experience. Every boy and girl is wise who heeds it.

The church does not seem to be very important to a boy. Even parents often take little interest in having their children attend church or Sunday-school. Do you see that man who has risen higher than his fellows? Great mind? No. Strong body? No. But in obedience to God he just gave himself to others. He humbled himself and therefore was exalted. "I owe everything to the church, where my parents learned the secret of life, where I was trained for and inspired to service."

Did you ever see a milk-stool such as the farmers use, when at early dawn they rest their heads against the soft flanks of the cows and draw out the rich, warm milk? I remember the one that hung near our barn door. Some stools are one-legged, some two-legged, some three - legged. A one-legged stool cannot stand alone, neither can a two-legged stool, but a three-legged stool stands firm. So with lives. Home, School, Church are the three legs of character, — the legs by which one climbs up the steep ascent of life to win the summit; or the "wings" by which one rises to the upper air.

V

THE NEED OF A STARTER

And he (Andrew) brought him (Peter) to Jesus. — John 1: 42.

It takes two boys to fly a kite. When John has the kite all made, he must call his chum in to hold it. The chum is a starter. He holds it steady, and at the word gives it a little boost, and up it goes.

Speak to that kite that is soaring high above our heads: "Tell us how you got up so high. How did it happen?" This is the answer: "I was out in the field lying on the ground. I felt a gentle pull but I could not get up, then I felt a firm hand take hold of me and lift me up. Next there came a pull, and this same hand gave me a gentle push and up I went, all the time feeling the pull." That firm hand was the starter.

Do you see that man high up above his fellow-men? If you are told his name — Peter — you will at once know who he is. "Tell us how you rose to such a height, Peter." Listen: "This is the way it began. I was a fisherboy, and was rough and impulsive and profane. I went to school to Jesus, and I owe all to Him. But let me tell you of the start. I had a brother, named Andrew. He heard of Jesus, and one day he took me and brought me to Jesus. He was my starter. He gave me the push that started me upward."

Ask that other man, so large and rough — Moody is his name — how he got to such a height. Listen: "I was a young man in Boston. I was rough and unpromising,— the product of a rocky New England farm. One day there came a man — his name was Kimball — who gently, yet firmly, took hold of me and lifted me up, and when I felt the pull of God he gave me a push, a boost; and from that start I have never stopped going up, and I hope never shall until I reach heaven."

I recently called on a neighbor — a young woman, who showed me pictures of two young men. She said: "I am proud of those two boys. They are rising in the world. They were once in my Sunday-school class in Chicago, — a part that people call the slums. I have kept hold of them; they are bound upward." I said to myself, what a splendid starter this young woman is! And the Sunday-school teachers all over the world, who pick out boys and girls, take them gently and firmly in hand and give them a start upward! It is glorious!

Did you ever hear of John B. Gough, the matchless temperance orator? When a young man I heard him many times. What wonderful power he had to sway men! For years he was a miserable drunkard. One day he was lying in the gutter, — actually lying in the gutter of the street, drunk, his besotted face turned up to the sun and the idle gaze of passers-by. A lady came to where he was, saw him, and before passing on took a handkerchief and gently covered over his face. When he awoke from his drunken stupor he found the handkerchief and realized that a good woman had had compassion on him. This kind act was a gentle push upward. Gough, after he had risen high, often referred to it as his start. What a blessed act!

I once saw a young man walk down the aisle of the church, erect and manly, to confess his faith in church before men. Many afterward were drawn to Christ by his start.

One may be only a starter,— a bit of a boy or girl, like the nameless girl-heroine in the palace of Naaman,— and yet be exceedingly useful. Often a fine clock stands still. A key is brought and it is wound up. Still it refuses to run. You take your finger and touch the pendulum, and off it goes. The finger touch was important, yes, necessary. If one cannot be a Peter he may be an Andrew. If one cannot rise to heights which will make others turn and gaze with wonder and praise, he may be a starter, — the hand that gently and firmly held a young life and, when God's cord of love pulled upward, gave the upward push that made great things possible.

"And he brought him to Jesus." Who cannot be an Andrew?

VI AGAINST THE WIND

We glory in tribulation. — Rom. j: j.

There are two or three things that a boy quickly learns about kite-flying. He never tries to fly a kite with the wind. It would fall flat and never go up at all. Neither does he go out to fly his kite when no breeze is stirring, for in this case he would need to keep running in order to keep his kite up. No, he goes out when a good steady breeze is blowing, and sends the kite up against the wind. He learns, also, that when the wind is strong the tail must be heavier than when the breeze is light.

The chief thing to learn is that if a kite is to go up it must go up against the wind.

Some boys and girls are like the fancy kites that hang over the mantel-piece, or decorate the hall. They are made of soft tissue paper and of bright colors, but they are not made for the air. Their soft, tender sides would tear out in the least blow. There are boys and girls that are coddled too much. Their parents would like to have them learn how to swim if they did not go too near the water. Their parents are like mother-birds that would like their fledglings to learn to fly if they did not have to go out of their nests. I have seen boys and girls who were beautiful to look at, were all right for the parlor, but were of no use out in the world. The first gust of wind tore them to pieces.

Some parents are like a boy who holds on to his kite after the word "let go" has been given. The boy sees other kites going up; he sees one or two dashed to pieces in the tree-tops; he would like his kite to go up, but there are so many chances of accident that he holds on. If he could only go up with the kite, but he can't, so he holds on. When the pull comes that would lift the kite up, he holds on.

How many boys and girls are spoiled because father and mother are unwilling to trust them to "let go." The best friend a boy has is a father that trusts him, that lets him go out of his sight, that, in fact, gives him a little push upward, although it takes his boy away from him.

Kites were made for air and adverse winds, not for ornament. Children are made for the world. The home is only one station in life, a place of fitting out, where boys and girls are to be started. It is a sad sight to see parents hanging on to their children long after they ought to be out in the world. It is a wise parent that gradually teaches his child to stand alone, to go alone, to read alone, to speak alone, and comes to trust him out of his sight. The child is better for it, and the parent truer to his trust. Let us learn of the birds, as they teach their young to fly.

Kites go up only when against the wind. This is a very important thing to remember. Life that is easy and soft often spoils the child. The people who get up in the world have had to face adversity. The son of a rich man has a hard time of it. More honor is due him when he rises in the world. The history of the great and good is the story of the poor who have had to struggle against the wind.

The world in which we live is often a world of adverse winds, and a good thing it is. One of the wisest men that ever lived, and one who rose very high in the world, told men to "rejoice in tribulation"; and another man, nearly as great, said, "We ought to be glad when we fall into trials." When I think of the great men and women of history, I see that they were made great because they had to face hardships, and the hardships only made them go higher.

We live in a world of adverse winds. We cannot help this, even if we try. The only question a boy or girl can ask is, Shall I face these winds or turn my back upon them? It is easier to turn one's back and drift along with them; but then one never gets up, and instead falls to the earth. It is far better to squarely face adverse winds, — hard work, poverty, temptations to swear and drink and smoke, and all such, — and when we feel the invisible hand, to respond.

The way we face adverse winds determines our greatness and the height to which we go. Only as birds are pushed out of the nest and use their wings do they learn to fly and soar in the blue sky on high. Only as chickens are made to scratch for their lives do they increase in size and strength. Only as boys are put into the water and pushed out do they learn to swim. A log can float down stream, but only a boat pushed by the power of steam or strong arms can cut the current upstream.

Adverse winds are made to test us, to strengthen us, to make us rise. Happy the boy or girl who sees and believes.

VII THE STRING THAT DRAWS UPWARD

I drew them with cords, with bands of love. — Hos. u: 4.

A threefold cord is not quickly broken. — Eccles. 4: 12.

After a kite is made, frame, cord, paper, tail, and all, a ball of string must be bought or borrowed from mother's cupboard. No kite ever went up without this string.

The string ought to be strong, but not too heavy. The longer it is the better. Some kites never get up very high, because the owner did not lay in enough string. Be careful, too, in fastening it to the kite. It must be tied to the frame, not to the paper or the cord, and so tied that the pull will be even on all parts of the kit^

I was flying a kite the other day, the wind was strong and came in gusts, when suddenly there was a strong tug, then a snap, and the string broke. What did my kite do? Go sailing higher? No, it rapidly fell, and I found it in a neighbor's yard, luckily uninjured.

What is the string that carries men up and holds them after they get up? I hardly know what to call it. It is the cord that binds us to God. Take a piece of string and it will help you to understand what I mean. A Bible wise man once said, 'A threefold cord is not quickly broken." Unwind the strands of the string and you will see it has three strands. Let me ask another wise man to name these strands, and he will say, "Faith, Hope, and Love." Yes, we are held up and held to God by Faith^ Hope^ and Love. Sometimes this string is called Prayer. Whatever the string is called, it is the invisible cord that takes hold of us, pulls us upward and holds us there in storm and darkness as well as in sunshine. No one ever got up high in the world unless he had hold of the Eternal. Thousands of splendid men and women have been ruined because they neglected prayer and lost faith, gave up hope, and ceased to love.