Greetings from Russell's Remnant:

Russell's Teacher once told a member of the TNG that humanity must "take itself less seriously." That we must learn to laugh at ourselves. He stated that the initiate Jesus had a great sense of humor. Every aspirant must learn to laugh at him/herself. Initiates must set examples for humanity to follow. The third degree initiate, Abraham Lincoln, who took the fourth initiation in his recent life; had a very sad love life. However, he was able to laugh at himself in the following letter he wrote to a friend.

To Mrs. Orville H. Browning, a personal friend (4/1/38): "In the autumn of 1836, a married lady of my acquaintance, and who was a great friend of mine, proposed to me, that on her return she would bring a sister of hers with her, upon condition that I would engage to become her brother-in-law with all convenient dispatch. I, of course, accepted the proposal; for you know I could not have done otherwise, had I really been averse to it; but privately between you and me, I was most confoundedly well pleased with the project. I had seen the said sister some three years before, thought her intelligent and agreeable, and saw no good objection to plodding life through hand in hand with her."

"In a few days we had an interview, and although I had seen her before, she did not look as my imagination had pictured her. I knew she was over-size, but she now appeared a fair match for Falstaff; I knew she was called an 'old maid', and I felt no doubt of the truth of at least half of the appellation; but now, when I beheld her, I could not for my life avoid thinking of my mother; and this, not from withered features, for her skin was too full of fat, to permit its contracting in to wrinkles; but from her want of teeth, weather-beaten appearance in general, and from a kind of notion that ran in my head, than nothing could have commenced at the size of infancy, and reached her present bulk in less than thirty-five or forty years; and, in short, I was not at all pleased with her. But what could I do? I had told her sister that I would take her for better or for worse; and I made a point of honor and conscience in all things, to stick to my word, especially if others had been induced to act on it, which in this case, I doubted not they had, for I was now fairly convinced, that no other man on earth would have her, and hence the conclusion that they were bent on holding me to my bargain. Well, thought I, I have said it, and, be consequences what they may, it shall not be my fault if I fail to do it. At once I determined to consider her my wife; and this done, all my powers of discovery were put to the rack, in search of perfections in her, which might be fairly set-off against her defects. I tried to imagine she was handsome, which, but for her unfortunate corpulency, was actually true."

"Through life I have been in no bondage, either real or imaginary from the thraldom of which I so much desired to be free. After I had delayed the matter as long as I thought I could in honor do, which by the way had brought me round into the last fall, I concluded I might as well bring it to a consummation without further delay; and so I mustered my resolution, and made the proposal to her direct; but, shocking to relate, she answered, No. At first I supposed she did it through an affection of modesty, which I thought but ill-become her, under the peculiar circumstances of her case; but on my renewal of the charge, I found she repelled it with greater firmness than before. I tried it again and again, but with the same success, or rather with the same want of success."

"My vanity was deeply wounded by the reflection, that I had so long been too stupid to discover her intentions, and at the same time never doubting that I understood them perfectly; and also, that she whom I had taught myself to believe no body else would have, had actually rejected me with all my fancied greatness; and to cap the whole, I then, for the first time, began to suspect that I was really a little in love with her. But let it all go. I'll try and out live it. Others have been made fools of by the girls; but this can never be with truth said of me. I most emphatically, in this instance, made a fool of myself. I have now come to the conclusion never again to think of marrying; and for this reason; I can never be satisfied with any one who would be block-head enough to have me." - Abe Lincoln - Speeches and Writings - pp. 37+

Russell was once asked about all the road kill animals. He stated that most were males who while chasing the females threw caution to the wind and lost their head, legs, tails, etc. Russell once told an initiate who was complaining about their love life that "Your Soul doesn't give a damn about your spouse, your children or your job. Those are all personality things and have nothing to do with Soul or the Plan." D. K. also points out that personality matters are often a great hindrance to the work.

I met a woman riding on horseback in the woods. As I stopped to let her pass, she also stopped and looked at me intently and said, "I do believe you are the ugliest man I ever saw."

"Madam," I said, " you are probably right, but I can't help it."

"No," she said, "you can't help it, but you might stay home." Abraham Lincoln