If you want to succeed, cultivate a feeling of hopeful
thankfulness.
Hopefulness, thankfulness and success are as near akin as light,
heat and motion--the same force underlies, makes up the first
trio, as it does the second.
If you find it hard to be thankful, read a little of history, and
thankfulness will come. Thousands of millions of men have lived
and suffered to make your existence here at least bearable. You
may not be satisfied, but you have comforts that were not dreamed
of by the luckiest a few centuries back. You think the
prosperous have too many privileges.
Perhaps they have. But when your great-grandfather was a young
man a nobleman could order his lackeys to seize Voltaire the
greatest mind in Europe--and beat him almost to death. Voltaire
was locked up in the Bastile for complaining.
Thanks to the eternal row that Voltaire kicked up, you can never
be treated as he was. So be thankful to Voltaire.
Be thankful to the long line of plucky men and fighters--not
forgetting Christopher Columbus--who have gone before you.
Be thankful that you are alive in an interesting age with
interesting events happening.
Be thankful also that with thankfulness you combine the feeling
of dissatisfaction, of unrest that will push you ahead and give
you cause for fresh thankfulness next year. ----
We are thankful to have you for a reader.
We are thankful for the criticisms and friendly comments that you
occasionally send.
We hope that you will enjoy your dinner to-day and not regret it
to-morrow.