p. 11 | The Home Atmosphere by Kate Lindsay

Seventh-day Adventist Publishing Association · Battle Creek, Mich. · Aug 5, 1902

The Home Atmosphere

By Kate Lindsay

KATE LINDSAY

THE healthy, happy infant or little child is the type of the most blissful and enjoyable condition which ever falls to the lot of mortals. Such a little one rejoices in the beautiful and pleasant things in this world. For its especial delight the bright sun shines; the moon at night and the stars light up the darkness for its especial enjoyment. It may even feel such a sense of possession of those beautiful things as to want to lay hold on them, and to desire its mother to give it the lamp, or climb up and bring it a star. It has full faith in every one around it, and not until it has been deceived does it begin to be haunted by doubt and unbelief. It loves the blue sky, the bright-colored flowers, and all things that speak of health and brightness. It is thus that the all-wise Creator would have human existence begin.

The little child is also a mirror of the words and actions of the home life, and no looking-glass, be it ever so perfect a reflector, can equal the plastic mind of infancy for absorbing and reflecting in after life either the bright, happy, loving home life, where peace dwelt, and all were kind and loving, or the home where fierce quarrels and discord made up the daily routine of words and deeds, where the little one soon learned that to escape punishment it must prevaricate and conceal its acts, especially if its parents or guardians were angry or out of temper.

This is often the first step in the wrong direction. From concealment soon comes direct falsehood. The little one who lives in a selfish home atmosphere will have a double life, and all manner of bad traits of character will grow with his mental and physical strength. He soon learns to deal out to others the same treatment that he receives. Knowing that he will deceive others if he can, he naturally thinks that others are trying to deceive and get the better of him. All this has not only a bad effect on the mind and morals, but it affects the physical being as well. The action of the heart is depressed, the digestion hindered, and assimilation and the building up of tissues become imperfect. The wastes are retained in the body because of the defective elimination, and an imperfect body is the result. When the mind is buoyant, and the hopes are stimulated by a prospect of present bliss and future enjoyment, it is like the stimulating effects of the spring sunshine to the animal and vegetable world.

Sunshine for the body, and sunshine of happiness in the heart are the birthright of infancy and childhood, if it is sought to cultivate healthy human plants. In this day of painstaking, scientific research to find the cause of every result, we often meet with the term “degenerate.” Often the word is passed over without a thought. What is it to be degenerate? — In one sense, the whole human race are degenerates from the perfect type in the garden of Eden. But even to-day there is an ideal of human perfection recognized as attainable, and deviations from this are said to be more or less degenerate,—less perfect in form and structure, weaker mentally, and more or less debased morally. In fact, a man’s degeneracy may be measured by the amount of injury he does the world he lives in, and the amount of evil influences he leaves to work after him.

Let the human plants, then, have their springtime of life and activity warmed with the sunshine of love and hope and faith. It is to prepare them to bring forth fruit to bless their fellow men in after life, and to forward the Master’s work in the earth. It is the time when the growing body should lay up a store of physical strength to fit it for its life work, and enable it to withstand all the harmful influences that tend to cause disease and to injure the human body.

Teach the children to respect the body and to treat it well because it is sacred, made to be the temple of the Holy Ghost. Teach them that it is their duty to be happy and active, to live to serve God and to help their fellow men. In the garden of Eden man knew only good. Because of his desire to know evil came the fall. Every child of Adam must sooner or later meet evil; but give the little ones a chance to become acquainted with all the good possible, so that they may have a reserve of health and strength and courage to make a successful battle of life’s warfare. Help them to improve body, mind, and morals. Talk to them of health and happiness, truth and beauty, and “whatsoever things are pure” and “lovely.” All these are the language of health. “A merry heart doeth good like a medicine.”