Precept and Practice – DECEMBER 7 – Pain

Pain seems to be a door into the realm of conscious experience.   It is true that we often say, when we are passing through it:  ‘I cannot think of anything to-day because I am in such pain.’   ‘I hardly know what to do for the pain’ and yet, when it passes away, we are sensitive to a host of impressions that we before ignored.  Rest, companionship, the scent of flowers, the pleasure of simple foods, the joy of sleep, all are ours in a new way;  we have a new experience of them.  And friends, as they watch us after we have come out of the darkness, notice a growth in sympathy and self-control, a larger and more thoughtful view of things.   Specially is this the case if we have come very near to the gates that open on the fair Paradise of the other life;  if we have looked in, as it were, and then been brought back again.   The inconveniences and vexations that are so often the staple of conversation are seen in their right proportion;  the gaieties and frivolities which waste so much precious time are felt to be a misuse of the purpose of life;  and the opportunities of self-sacrifice are known to be those which bring most real wealth.

(The Reverend Q. H. S. Walpole – Personality and Power)

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From the Introduction to Precept and Practice

The kindly welcome given to my other little books, ‘Being and Doing’ and ‘Character and Conduct,’ must be my excuse for adding another collection of extracts to the number now in circulation.

The quotations are gathered from the books of many earnest thinkers, and deal with Life in all its length and breadth, with ourselves, our characters, our plain unvarnished faults and weaknesses, our often untoward circumstances, and with all that drags us down;-  with our purposes, our religion, our love and friendships, and with all that uplifts us;-  with our relation to others, our influence and responsibilities, and finally with those stages of our journey which bring us to the Road’s Last Turn and to the Silent Land.

CONSTANCE  M. WHISHAW