Back in the days of old when there was no TV, people used to entertain themselves playing games of all sorts that are no longer known today. Most of these, modern science never used or even discovered, but they are still there contained within the journals and memoires of people long forgotten. They were people like us. They also liked to study and expand their knowledge into new fields; garner their thinking and train their brains. They liked to show others how clever they were, so they concerned themselves with games that helped them develope a sharp thinking.

I dug up an old tattered book form a former prisoner of war was buried alive in a graveyard near Oklahoma City when a Confederate army general came to the conclusion that killing him would not be necessary. This book was his journal and it contained exercises to keep his mind fresh. How I came to possess this book is another story.

Here is the complete collection of the secret brain-training techniques of Colonel Rodget Mitchelson Pauwels:

#1 - Needs

1. Determine a list of needs.
2. Summon four soldiers and command them to say the first word that comes to them.
   
3. Evaluate the four random words with respect to the kind of values that they may stand for.
4. Explain how the random word can help satisfy the needs in the list.

Example:

Needs: security, food, home, money, friends

Random words: wrench, ankle, surgeon, book

Thoughts:

• Wrench and surgeon refers to jobs that yield good income.
• Wrench refers to an ability to fabricate, so you can build your own home.
• Book can be a cookbook so that you can cook some special food.
• Books can be discussed with friends or in book clubs.
• Wrench can be a tool to protect oneself against an attack
• Ankle can be associated with sports and pursuibg some sports you can make new friends

#2 - Joy

1. Summon five soldiers and demand their random words.
2. Select four words and ignore the fifth.
3. Determine how the four words in a row can ensure some kind of joy.

Example:

Random words: creepers, card, bird, crumbs, naughtiness

Thoughts:

• Word left out is naughtiness.
• Bird brings up an association with an aviary.
• I big aviaries there can be lush vegetation and lots of creepers.
• Visitors can have cards depicting all the bird species found in the aviary.
• Their task is to find one specimen for each species and feedthem with crumbs.

#3 - Connection

1. Get a random word.
2. Elicit more random words until you find the one that has the closest connection to the first one.

Example:

Random words: wagon, bus station, passion, optimist, golf

Thoughts:

• Wagon - Bus Station: a strong connection in the fields of transportation and communication.
• Wagon - Passion: a passion to travel.
• Wagon - Optimist: travellers are optimists, because they trust that they would reach their destination.
• Wagon - Golf: a two-wheeled container usedto store and carry golfclubs.

The strongest pair is the first one.