Focus on Material Things Results in the "Blues," Says Lina Harrell, Jan. 4, 1921

Marshville--The general “deflation” of spirits which seem to have the country by the nape of the neck just now brings one up with a jerk to the realization of just how wedded the world is to material things. Of course we’ve got to live, and we must have something to live on.--and we have! True we are not flying as high as formerly, lots of us are wearing old clothes and last year’s shoes, and can’t collect a cent out o’ folks on the books, and so on, but what on earth is the use to get so blue about it? A long face and blue talk never won a battle for anybody. If everybody would make a New Year’s resolution to throw back their shoulders, take a deep breath and face the thing with a grin and cheerful, optimistic talk—Oh, how much better we would all feel. We are not suffering, so let’s wait until we are before we look like a death’s head. The only actual suffering is from the ungodly “blues” that not one of us has a moral right to indulge in. It is a sin to inject ourselves and humanity in general with any such spiritual depression? It’s detrimental to health as we all know, and if we keep it up we may be able to add some nervous break downs and such things to the general situation in order to liven things up a bid. What do you say, let’s stop it? Remember this-- “The man worth while Is the man who can smile When everything goes wrong.” If you are doing the best you can, and in an honest way, nothing more can be expected of you, but this much is dead sure, the more blue talk you indulge in and encourage the other fellow to do, just that much worse off are we all going to be physically and mentally if not financially. Now then! I feel very much better! I am quite sure I can smile the next few days anyhow, unless I meet some o’ you folks that won’t. --Lina C. Harrell From the front page of The Monroe Journal, by Lina C. Harrell, Jan. 4, 1921