The mind is colored by what it holds

This post is part of the General Conference Odyssey. This week covers the Sunday Afternoon Session of the April 1978 Conference.

Image courtesy http://www.quotes-daily.com

Elder Sterling W. Sill gave an interesting talk in this session about poetry, of all things. His main point was that we are shaped by the words and thoughts we keep in our minds, which is kind of the same idea behind President Packer's "sing a hymn to combat negative thoughts" advice.

But I did think it was kind of funny, because I just wrote a post mentioning some types of poetry I'm not fond of, and several of the poems Elder Sill quotes are in exactly that genre…the very rhymey, didactic, "inspirational verse" genre; the sort of thing that is written in flowing script over pale watercolors of beach scenes. It really isn't my favorite, and maybe it never will be, but in spite of that I can appreciate it for what it tries to do. I can also appreciate that it might really touch someone else in a way it doesn't touch me, and that alone makes it worthwhile. And—I also think it's really easy in our world to be cutting and ironic and make fun of anything that seems earnest or heartfelt. I'm trying to learn not to do that.

It's the same with music, I think. I have very definite tastes and opinions about what is good church music, and what is not—but I try to keep them (mostly) to myself because I know that some music I don't particularly like, may still be the means by which someone else feels the spirit and gains inspiration. I don't want to stand in the way of that by snobbily insisting only "my kind" of music is valuable. Although, I do think I could make a case for trying to introduce people to better music and better poetry, even if it's less popular or less accessible at first. But doing that requires me to assert that what I think is better really IS better, and I'm not sure if that's too prideful of me…

Well. Anyway, Elder Sill also quotes the hymn "O My Father," which I love and think is beautifully poetic, so it's not like our tastes are totally opposed. And I can definitely agree with this quote:

William James, the great Harvard psychologist, once asked this question, how would you like to create your own mind? But isn’t that about what usually happens? Professor James explains that the mind is made up by what it feeds upon. He said that the mind, like the dyer’s hand, is colored by what it holds. If I hold in my hand a sponge full of purple dye, my hand becomes purple. And if I hold in my mind and heart great ideas of faith and enthusiasm, my whole personality is changed accordingly. 

If we think negative thoughts, we develop negative minds. If we think depraved thoughts, we develop depraved minds. On the other hand, if we think celestial thoughts, which are the kind of thoughts that God thinks, then we develop celestial minds…

I'm pretty sure I've written about this before, but one of the most influential things one of my poetry teachers taught me was that poetry (and art and writing in general; any of the creative arts) doesn't just spontaneously appear in our minds—it comes from somewhere! There is no way to create from a blank slate. This teacher said that the mark of an immature and inexperienced artist is someone who insists that he doesn't want to read other writers (or imitate other artists, or whatever) because he wants to remain "original" and "untainted" by other ideas. But someone who says this doesn't realize that if he doesn't deliberately choose to absorb and cultivate good influences, he will up being influenced instead by the most low-quality and banal of material; material he hasn't chosen, like radio jingles and mass-market romance novels and pop culture fads.

I think of this every time I read Isaiah's words: all we like sheep have gone astray. We aren't really the independent actors we like to think we are: all of us are influenced by something! We can't really choose just NOT to have influences at all. But we can control what KIND of influences we surround ourselves with. We can fill our time with deliberate goods so there will be less time for unintentional bads.

So even though Elder Sill and I might not choose the same poems to memorize, I agree with him: memorize poems! Find good music and good art to absorb and emulate! Because I know filling my mind with the best and most celestial material I can find will help me become a more celestial person.


Other posts in this series:

• When People Are Able But Unwilling To Depend On God by Jan Tolman