“Some people collect things; I collect hints,” says Mary Ellen Pinkham, author of several helpful advice books. Collecting hints or tips published in newspapers and magazines as fillers is a useful hobby. Even before reading one of her books, I used to collect useful hints and preserve them in my journal.
Most hints are published in newspapers and magazines without the name of the writer. However, they contain the concentrated wisdom relating to many subjects. They are invariably points to ponder. ‘Sunshine Magazine’ had the following hint tucked in the corner of a page: “Watch your thoughts, they become words; watch your words, they become actions; watch your actions, they become habits; watch your habits, they become character; watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”
Our eyes are the most important sensory organs. After reading a book or travelling for a long distance, we experience eye strain. We can relieve the eye strain by stopping every 20 minutes or so and looking into the distance for a minute. Blink your eyes for a few seconds and close them tightly. When you do so several times, your eyes will get lubricated.
Supermarket
How do you take control in a supermarket? After picking up a basket, head for the checkout when it gets heavy. Some supermarkets hide baskets compelling customers to use trolleys. While pushing the trolley you will chuck in all unnecessary items into it.
Before going to a supermarket, make a list of the items you want to buy and stick to it. Avoid ‘Buy one, get one free’ offers like the plague. Whenever possible take cash with you. Credit cards lead to budget-breaking impulses. Look up and down the shelves where they keep the most profitable brands at eye level. For bargains, check the top and bottom shelves.
We experience thunder showers these days. Lightning is one of the most lethal and misunderstood forms of weather. When it is lightning, a building is the safest shelter. Avoid using land-phones, hand phones, all electrical appliances and computers. Do not stay near metal doors and windows. Staying in a car is safe because of its steel frame. However, cars with fibreglass shells offer no shelter at all. Remember that lightning can occur even without rain.
In the digital age, most of us send e-mails. Your e-mail should be short because people have no time to read pages of material on a screen. Many people will not open an e-mail if they do not know who it is from or the subject matter. You should respond to e-mail messages within 24 hours.
English novelist John Galsworthy says, “Love is no hot-house flower, but a wild plant, born of a wet night, born of an hour of sunshine, sprung from wild seed, blown along the road by a wild wind, a wild plant that, when it blooms by chance within the hedge of our garden, we call it a flower; and when it blooms outside we call it a weed; but, flower or weed, whose scent and colour are always wild.” After reading it, you may understand love in a different light. However, we know that love and time cannot be bought, but only spent.
If you wish to remain healthy, do not touch your face unnecessarily. Your hands come in contact with more germs than do most other parts of your body. Break the habit and you will contract fewer colds. Drink six to eight glasses of water a day to keep your skin in good shape.
Professional success
While reading ‘Esquire’ magazine I came across the following hint relating to attention to detail: “In the end, it is attention to detail that makes all the difference. It is the centre of fielder’s extra two steps to the left, the salesman’s memory for names, the lover’s phone call, the soldier’s clean weapon. It is the thing that separates the winners from the losers, the men from the boys and very often the living from the dead. Professional success depends on it, regardless of the field.” I have yet to come across a better hint on attention to detail than this.
Brush your tongue
You do not need an expert to tell you that you should brush your teeth regularly. However, you fail to brush your tongue when you brush your teeth. Food particles can accumulate in the irregular surfaces of your tongue and they can cause bad breath.
Denture wearers hardly visit the dentist. A hint in a health magazine says that denture wearers should be examined every six months or so to make sure their gums are sound and dentures still fit correctly.
The young and even the not so young run to the nearest gym when they are overweight. There is nothing wrong in it because if you do not exercise your muscles, you will lose them and gain fat. Since fat is less dense than muscle, you may not see the difference on the scales.
However, you will notice new bulges and bumps on your body. Even if you do not go to the gym, there are simple exercises to tone your muscles. Climb flights of stairs without using the lift. Walk briskly every morning or evening. If you do so, you will burn enough calories to lose about five kilograms a year.
In Eastern countries, husbands rarely kiss their wives before leaving for work. In the West, however, the practice continues. Those who kiss their wives before leaving home believe that they will live longer and earn more money than others who do not do so. Sometimes I see married couples doing exercises together. It is a healthy practice.
Hearty laugh
In the modern world, people are so busy that they do not find time to laugh. They do not know that a hearty laugh gives a workout to their stomach and chest muscles. Although your blood pressure and adrenalin go up during laughter, they drop to normal levels afterwards releasing stress. That is why they say, “Laughter is the best medicine.”
Sometimes we squander the bits and pieces of time that punctuate our days. Rather than wasting energy and getting irritated, try to remain patient when someone is doing a job for you such as repairing your laptop. Capture these moments of waiting by doing something creative. Carry a book to read or a notebook to jot down your fleeting thoughts. Such constructive use of time is available to most of us.
One day I saw a devout Catholic woman memorising the Sermon on the Mount while commuting to her workplace. A young man who later donned yellow robes used to read a book on Abhidhamma while travelling to his office. Such people know the value of time. This reminds me of a verse by Julia Fletcher Carney:
“Little drops of water,
Little grains of sand,
Make the mighty ocean
And the pleasant land.
So the little minutes,
Humble though they be,
Make the mighty ages
Of eternity.”
