"Hidden electrical forces annihilating time and space, wireless telegraphy, navigation of the air; in fact, all the et cetera of mortal mind pressing to the front, remind me of my early dreams of flying in airy space, buoyant with liberty and the luxury of thought let loose, rising higher and forever higher in the boundless blue." So wrote Mary Baker Eddy in an article now published in her book entitled "The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany" (p. 110).
How attuned to the hopeful dreams and aspirations of mankind was this divinely inspired religious Leader! She understood and sympathized with the restless imagination and the compelling desire for adventure and exploration without which little would be accomplished in the field of scientific research.
Comparatively few are those who, unrestrained by business and family obligations, can follow this desire into unexplored lands or seas or can satisfy it in the sanctuaries of laboratory or library. Many think wistfully of variety and adventure; yet they must find it near at hand, interwoven with their everyday experience. Hobbies, sports, the many forms of art and entertainment, serve a useful purpose for the individual and for society; yet there remains a longing for an interest more vital, for something which will bring about the satisfaction of achievement rather than merely fill in the time.
