--- title: Improvement Era description: Monthly periodical of the Mormon church, 1897 onward. This library holds the issues of November 1897 to December 1930. authors: - Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations collections: - periodicals tags: - magazine - improvement-era periodical: Improvement Era volume: 19 number: 1 published: 1915-11 publisher: Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations publisher_place: Salt Lake City language: en type: magazine reference: 'Young Men’s Mutual Improvement Associations, "Keeping One’s Life in Tune," *Improvement Era* 19, no. 1 (November 1915): 47.' source: url: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1901unse transcription: Transcribed from the Internet Archive scan of each issue (the item for each issue is named in the issue's own source); unnumbered advertising leaves are omitted, printed page numbers are kept as page markers. identifier: improvementera1901unse start_page: 47 end_page: 47 rights: status: public-domain basis: US publication 1930 or earlier (published 1915-11) source: https://archive.org/details/improvementera1901unse publication_year: 1915 note: The Internet Archive item metadata carries a blanket "© Copyright by Intellectual Reserve, Inc." notice. The library owner judged it inapplicable because this issue was published in 1915, before 1931; a scan-level notice does not restore copyright. --- # Keeping One’s Life in Tune Keeping One's Life in Tune A friend of the Eka submits the following philosophy: Pianos have to be kept in tune. Every now and then the tuner conies and goes over all the strings, keying them up, so that there will be no discords when the instrument is played. Our lives have a great many more strings than a piano, and much more easily get out of tune. Then they begin to make discords, and the music is spoiled. We need to watch them carefully to keep the strings always up to concert pitch. One way in which a piano is put out of tune is by use. The con- stant striking of the strings stretches them, and they need to be keyed up from time to time. Life's common experiences have an exhausting effect. We have our daily struggles, temptations, burdens, cares, duties, and at the close of the day we are tired, and the music our life makes is naturally not as sweet as it was in the morning. Another way in which a piano is put out of tune is by disuse. If it is kept closed, its strings will lose their tune. It is the same with our lives. They keep in tune best when they are fully occupied. It is a law of nature that a power not used, wastes — at length dies out. This is true of all our faculties. Musicians can maintain their skill only by constant practice. A great pianist said that if he missed his hours at his instrument for three days, the public would know it; if for two days, his friends would be aware of it; and that if he failed in his practice even for one day, he himself would be conscious of it. If we would keep our life in tune, we must not allow its power to lie unused. We make the sweetest music when we are living at our best. An idle man is never truly happy, nor is he the best maker of happi- ness for others. We learn to love more by loving. We get joyous by rejoicing. If we cease to be kind, even for a few days, it shows in the tone of our life, as others know us. If for only a day we fail in showing kindness, our hand will lose something of its skill in life's sweet ministry. A piano is put out of tune also by misuse. A skilful musician may spend hours in playing without affecting the tone of any of the strings, while inexperienced and unskilful playing jangles the chords and makes the instrument incapable of producing sweet musical effects. Many people so misuse and abuse their life that they destroy its power to give out sweetness. The bringing of the powers of our own life into tune is really the great problem of all spiritual culture. While the audience is waiting for the concert to begin, they hear a strange clangor back of the scenes. The instruments are being brought into acc6rd. At first they are far apart, hut in a little time they are all in perfect harmony. Then the music begins. Each human life is a whole orchestra by itself. But it is not in tune, and therefore, before we can begin sweet music, all of its many chords must be brought .into h:armony. This is the work of spiritual culture.- It is achieved only by the submission of the whole" life to God.