To think is necessary, but of what value are thoughts if they are not remembered? A few things remembered are better than a thousand forgotten. Memory means the ability to retain and recall in mental pictures those things which we have previously become conscious of through some of our senses. The length of time a fact is retained or remembered by the brain depends upon the depth of the impression it made in the memory.

The things that come to us suddenly, or with great force, and thereby monopolize our thoughts for the time to the exclusion of all other conditions, make an impression on the memory that can seldom if ever be eradicated.

The events in which we evince little or no interest are soon forgotten, because they do not become a part of us. The retention of a thought in the memory depends upon the force of the thought. Every thought that remains in the memory becomes a part of our lives because it stays with us and guides and governs us. If the thought makes a deep impression and is therefore retained in the memory, it becomes an active factor in shaping our future. If only a faint impression is made, it soon fades away and loses its influence over us.

One cannot tell the value of remembering a thought until the opportunity comes to use it. Many people have had thoughts at some time during their lives that if remembered and acted upon at the right time would have made them rich or famous. Almost everyone can recall a time when he had a thought that was valuable; one that filled him with enthusiasm and great expectations for the time, but he entrusted it to an imperfect memory, and when eventually discovered it was too late to make use of it.

Every thought registered in the brain makes a proportionate change in the matter of which the body is composed. The deeper and more lasting the thought, the greater is the change made by it. Therefore, the thoughts that help or harm us are those which we remember. Some people have a memory for certain subjects, while they seem to be incapable of remembering others. The thoughts, events, scenes, etc., that are not remembered are those with which the person was not in harmony. They did not call forth from him a strong responsve thought.

The memory is weakened or strengthened according to the attitude displayed towards the events of life, and also by the conditions and environments that surround the person. If he is indifferent and pays little or no serious attention to the things that occur around him, these things will make but a faint impression upon his memory, and will have little or no influence upon his life. Who ever heard of a gay, frivolous creature having a retentive memory? On the other hand, do we not find that people of serious thoughts - those who study and analyze science, art, etc., - have good memories? Those people take note of every little occurrence, every detail, and nothing is too insignificant to command their attention. They think over all they see and hear and thereby impress it indelibly upon their memory. People having poor memories have only a partial grasp upon life; they but drift through and never realize the beauties with which they are surrounded.

Fortunately, memory can be cultivated. To develop any faculty, we must use it. Exercise gives strength. Determination and concentration combined with exercise will produce marvelous results. One thought or fact carefully recorded upon the memory is more potent than a dozen faint impressions. To strengthen the memory, one must direct his attention to one subject and concentrate his whole thought upon it, to the exclusion of all other sounds or attractions. He must shut out all but the picture he desires to record in memory. To do this means that he must listen intently when people are talking, and must look carefully at the scene he wishes to remember. Then he should close his eyes, look within, and carefully review every detail, analyze the meaning, recall the points that seem indistinct, and live them over again in the brain until they become perfectly clear. By the time this has been done, a change will have taken place within, that has made those thoughts a part of himself. He will then be unable to separate himself from them, for they will be recorded in his memory.

Where do great thinkers go to improve their memories and record thoughts and events? Where do they do their studying and memorizing? They go where they can be alone; where they can live with their thoughts and make companions of them; they seek solitude and quiet.

If they can gain and retain a strong memory in this way, it must be a good example to emulate. Every man is owned by the thoughts he thinks, because the thought becomes a part of the man, and the man in turn becomes a part of the recorded thought.

All who will practice the following exercises, and be guided by the instructions, will in a short time observe an improvement in their memory, and if they persevere will acquire a memory that will be satisfactory in every respect. Bear in mind that a strong Will Power assists one to persevere and concentrate, and thus helps to strengthen the memory.

Let the person decide upon an hour or even a half hour that he can devote to these exercises. They should be taken at the same time each day, the evening being preferable. He should go to his own room where he can be alone. Then take his thoughts back to the hour he awakened, and commence from that point to carefully and thoughtfully trace every action through which he has passed during the entire day. He should try to take each in its respective order, and he must not be in a hurry to pass to another event until he has carefully analyzed and lived over every little detail of the scene he is reviewing. The ability to trace one scene or act to another, in consecutive order, will be a test of the memory. After having followed this exercise for a few days he will find himself taking a keener interest in the events of the day, and in his own actions. He will unconsciously do this so that he can recall them more easily in his mental review. In fact, he will soon begin to observe little details that previously he would have passed unnoticed. As he perseveres, he will learn to enjoy this closer observation, for his experiences of yesterday will be remembered, and they will guide him in his actions today, and thus the sense of reasoning will also improve. The increase in knowledge and the facts he will store up will make the exercise fascinating.

It is not what a man earns but what he saves that makes him rich. It is not what a man observes but what he retains that makes him wise.

Another exercise that will invigorate the memory along another line of thought is to be carried out as follows: -

The person should take a book, of his own selection, and decide that he will memorize all the facts and truths it contains so that he can repeat in detail the contents without referring to it. He will then begin with the first sentence and read it carefully and thoughtfully, analyzing each word until he understands its full meaning. A dictionary should be kept at hand so that he can look up the definition of any word about which he may have the slightest doubt. We cannot remember words unless they convey to us some thought that we can understand, for words are but a means of expressing .thought. We remember all things by the image or picture they make in the brain. If we do not understand the meaning of a word, we can have no mental picture of its import, therefore, it can leave no impression on the memory.

One new sentence each day, if thoroughly analyzed will be a sufficient exercise. Each day before the lesson is taken up, the person should go over a number of the previous sentences again to see if he still retains them.

The third exercise to be taken is by means of solitary concentration in which Mentalism is to be used. The person will first concentrate his thoughts on some particular person or subject for at lease ten minutes, then relax the Will and wait for the mental messages. As the thoughts come to him, he should make a brief note of them on paper, but must not attempt to write them out in detail, for in the concentration necessary to do this, other thoughts will be kept out that he should receive. After receiving these messages for from fifteen to thirty minutes he should then cease and begin to write them all out in detail just as he saw and felt them. His ability to do this will be a test of his memory. He must read them over after having finished writing them out, and keep them until the next day at the same hour, and then make a mental review .and see how well he has remembered them. When assured that they are all recorded in his memory, he may again concentrate for the purpose of receiving new messages. Either or all of these exercises may be repeated once a day or at least every second day. If elevating subjects are selected as lessons, they will elevate and beautify the life, for a man is owned by the thoughts he thinks. The thoughts which are recorded during these exercises will play an important part in shaping the person's future life. It is always much easier to learn to remember than it is to forget. Then be advised and do not record thoughts that you might afterwards wish to forget.

"So many Gods, so many creeds,

So many paths that wind and wind, When just the art of being kind,

Is all this old world needs".