Brooks changes course

Leslie Cavill Haslam

One day Brooks did one wrong thing after another. Instead of getting dressed when he was supposed to, he played with his toy dinosaurs. That made Mom late for work. He yelled at his sister when she picked up his book. At dinner he fooled around with his food instead of eating it. Mom started to get angry.

By bedtime Brooks was in tears because he'd had such a horrible day. When Mom came to his room to tuck him in and say prayers with him, he asked, "Can you give me some thoughts about God." Brooks and Mom had talked before about how God can help us even if we feel sick or sad. So Mom read this sentence from Science and Health by Mrs. Eddy: "If you believe in and practise wrong knowingly, you can at once change your course and do right."^{Science and Health, p. 253.}

"What does 'change your course' mean?" Brooks wanted to know. Mom said, "If I were driving our car down the road and we were heading for a tree, I would turn the steering wheel so we wouldn't crash. That would change the direction, or course, of the car. When you argue with Meghan or fight with a friend, it feels as if you are going to crash into them. To stop, you can 'change your course and do right.' "

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