英语励志美文精华 57

Don't Step Out of Character

BY VIRGINIA SAL!

ON A PLANE flying from Chicago to New York, my seat companion

was a young girl who gave me a friendly smile as I sat beside her, but

whose young face showed great sadness. Hesitantly, she told me she

was on her way to the funeral of her seventeen-year-old brother, had been Wiled 2 in Korea. She also told me that her only other relatives

were two brothers, both in the service, and that they had loss

their eldest 3 brother in the war in Europe. I wanted to say something

to comfort her ... I felt so useless. ... All I could say was "I'm so sorry." And I thought, "Just what can I do to help bring order and

hope into the world today?" And the thought came to me, "I can

pray and my prayers will tune 4 in with other sincere prayers to create

a mighty 5 force for good and for peace in the world."

As a girl I was fortunate in having old-fashioned, religious parents

and I often think of the old hymn 6 my good father sang so lustily as

I stood beside him in church, "I need Thee every hour As I'v

grown older my philosophy has changed in a way. I don't think of

God now as an old man with a long gray beard sitting up on a throne

I believe in a practical religion. What good is it unless I can use it that

help solve my daily problems, large or small?

I am grateful for what I consider the most worthwhile things

my life a happy marriage, a good husband, and a son and daughter

who become ininitely finer as they grow up. Success in my theatrical 7

career has come second to these. However, no matter what my material blessings 9 may be, I realize that my happiness must come from

within myself. I can't get back anything I don't give out. Anybody

knows a sure cure for the blues 10 is to get out and do something nice for

someone else.

I have had a wonderful opportunity, on my tours with my one

woman show, to meet fine, good people in every one of the seven

hundred towns I've played. From them I know that good people predominate in every part of this country.

I love my work. I believe that laughter is a great sou! cleanser, and

I pray that my audiences may somehow be better off for having seen

my show. I believe in blessing 8 everything and everybody along the

way. Sometimes I may have let stage fright and nerves rob me and

my audience of my best performance. I have failed if I haven't beforehand blessed everyone in my audience, everyone backstage, and,

when I'm working in television, radio or motion pictures, everyone

in the studio my fellow actors and the director and technicians. I

admire their courage, their goodhearted generous qualities.

What do I mean by "blessing"? Well, I first have a deep sense of

gratitude 11 to an audience, and a feeling of good will and good wishes,

so that I know there is complete harmony between them and me,

and I know they will like me because I really like them that we will

tune in together.

My late brother, the great character actor and comedian 12, Charles

"Chic 1" Sale, said to me one time we were talking about spiritual

things and about being perfect channels for expression: "The thing

to do, kiddo, is to stay in character be God's child." And I try never

to forget this. a