TRUE COURTESY

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 235, 26 May 1932, Page 8

TRUE COURTESY

IS IX ON WANE? READINESS TO ANTICIPATE THE WISHES OF OTHERS. j SINCERITY AND SPONTANEITY When Portia said "The quality of mercy is not strained," what precisely did she mean? Whatever interpretations may be offered, the immediate impression conveyed is that , of the spontaneity of true goodness. Beyond question, we all recognise that any virtue which at its best is utterly spontaneous. It needs no prompting, no urging. The best oil wells gush. There are complaints on every hand to-day that courtesy is decaying. To what extent this is true is difficult to gauge. When the indictment comes from elderly people we are disposed to discount it on the ground that'age tends to pessimism. Things are never what they were when we were young. Never theless, courtesy is a very beautiful flower, worth culi tivating in every garden, and the , choicest variety is that which is labelled "spontaneous." It anticipates the wishes of others, waits hot to be ; commanded or requested, but sees ' what needs doing and does it beforehand. It is foresight in company with | a charmingly unselfish heart. It is altruism par excellence. A fine old Puritan phrase, "prevenient grace," describes it exactly. It is anticipatory kindness, and suggests the Scriptural saying, "Before they call I will answer." It means the exercise of tact at its best. We discover in it a new and happy application of the Scout motto. "Be Prepared!" There is in addition to general preparedness an extension in the form of a suggestion to prepare beforehand for the service of others, to be awake and alert not merely to actual and visible requirements, but to be ahead of the time-table, foreseeing all, providing all. Altruism Abroad. \ That sounds like the function of a Divinity, but in our imperfeet way and humble sphere we can imitate the Highest. Idealism is easily sneered at as demand for impossibilities, but without it the race would stagnate Altruim is abroad, and is a watchword among the most influential groups in the world. It reacbes highwater mark when it acquires the spontaneity of babit and the unconsciousness attending an instinctive action. There is an unforgettable difference between the working of a rusty old pump and the flow of water springing up unbidden and unforced. So is it in human life. The home is supremely the locus for this spontaneous courtesy. The boy who sets his mother's chair for her a the table, and sets it before she arrives, who remembers to have her footstool waiting for her, is one of God Almighty's gentlemen. He will go on to make sure that grandma's spectacles are at her hand when she sits down, and will be dismayed at their disappearance until, with a hearty laugh, he discovers them high up on the dear old soul's forehead. The girl who after a day of pouring rain has her father's slippers toasting by the fire, and perhaps also a pair of dry socks beside them, has a heart of g old, and diffuses a gladness she is incapable of estimating. When father's and mother's birthday is approaching there are conspiracies going on in advance for weeks, so that by means of unsuspected interrogations and diseoveries the right presents may be seeured. Laid Aside. There is reason to fear that a goodly number of young people nowadays do not practise this lovely art of anticipation. Their manners outside the home are faultless, and so conspicuously fine as to be remarked upon, but in the home they are laid aside like Sunday cloths. Too often a son is a gentleman abroad and a boor in the family. He springs to anticipate the wishes of the angelic creature in the ballroom, but is not so ready to foresee and provide for the wishes of his mother and sisters at home. There is an old saying about the inconsistent person that he is "a causeway saint and a fireside deevil." The languaga is strong — but not too strong. Some of us have met specimens of the clan. On the other hand, there are young men who fail in the task of anticipation merely from want of thought . They see their failure, regret it, and are tempted to think that they can absolve themselves by using the stock phrase, "I never thought of it." Precisely — but why not? They were too busy thinking of themselves and not of the persons who had the greatest claim to be thought about at all times and in all circumstances. These selfcentred and scatter-brained sons and daughters will pile wreaths on mother's coffin; 'twere better they brought her flowers while she lives. Postmortem tributes are vain and hypocritical if they have not been preceded by constant and affectionate service. What is called filial piety best proves and expresses-its'slf in "those little, nameless, unremembered deeds of kindness and of love." Anticipating the wishes and nesds of others is the road to perfection.