frank crane: if i were 21

My cousin Elaine and me during our Hurricane Sandy lockdown.  Love this shot of us and our braided hair!

I can't quite remember how I found this piece by Frank Crane but I certainly have enjoyed reading it.  Click on the link to read more about what Frank would do if he were 21.  (I just have a couple qualms about his marriage advice but am pretty into the rest of his suggestions!).  What would you do if you were twenty-one?  

1. If I were twenty-one I would "do the next thing"
2. If I were twenty-one I would adjust myself.  
• More people I have known have suffered because they did not know how to adjust themselves than for any other reason. And the happiest-hearted people I have met have been those that have the knack of adapting themselves to whatever happens.
3. If I were twenty-one I would take care of my body.  
• To this end I would note the four X’s. They are Examination, Excretion, Exercise, Excess.  (hehe!)
4. If I were twenty-one I would train my mind.
5. If I were twenty-one I would be happy.  
• By this I imply that any one can be happy if he will. Happiness does not depend on circumstances, but upon Me.
6. If I were twenty-one I would get married.
7. If I were twenty-one I would save money.
8. If I were twenty-one I would  study the art of pleasing.
9. If I were twenty-one I would determine, even if I could never be anything else in the world, that I would be a thoroughbred.
10. If I were twenty-one I would make some permanent, amicable arrangement with my conscience.

"I would, therefore, if I were twenty-one, study the art of life. It is good to know arithmetic and geography and bookkeeping and all practical matters, but it is better to know how to live, how to spend your day so that at the end of it you shall be content, how to spend your life so that you feel it has been worth while."