Academy of the Visitation - Crescent Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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SEMPER FIDELIS I wandered near an old stone wall At the close of a summers day The evening shadows were growing ta And on the grass grotesquely lay A summer qulet pervaded all Save through the trees An occaslonal breeze Whlspered of lands far away I lmgered near the old stone wall At the foot of a frxendly oak Seemg 1n the suns departmg ray The PFOITIISC of a falrer day And hstenmg to the lovlng call Of mate to mate When slowly softly sweetly stole The notes of a vxolm F1rmly sure Clearly pure Reveal1ng a soul wxthm And though at tlmes twas almost w1ld At others sadly sweet Though It mocked the ocean as a Or raced the w1nds so fleet One measure beat One slngle stram In thls refraln could not mxss F1rmly sure Clearly pure Semper F1dCllS It took for xts theme A mountaln stream And measured each drop that ramed Its wmdmg course Its puny force At last the ocean gamed I llstened spell bound To the sound Of the lapplng of the waves agaxnst the shore As they beat 1n endless regular1ty But beneath the mcessant roar A moanmg of the sea Took possess1on of me As ever the same Came th1s refram Fldelzty Fxdehty I heard the swmgmg rhythm of an army s mnghty band I saw the men file past m even rows And on the Captaxn s face the look that knows The danger and the glory of lt all Heroes awaxted the bugle call Awalted command Restlessly turn1ng Anxlously yearnmg The Slgnallflg' hand At last came the cavalry charge The onward dash The sabers flash Rlderless horses at large Above the roar of the cannon Above the enemy s fire Back from the h1l1s came the echo Htgher and hlgher and lugher Sharply clear Resoundmg near Cleavxng the abyss A reverberatlng-st-seam Repeatmg th1s refram Semper F1dCl1S The muslc changed the drum no longer beat No longer I heard the marcmng feet A qulet mght An awful sxght The field of battle after Hg V On the upturned faces The moon shone clear Reveahng no traces No lmes of fear I thought not then of the vxctory lost Or gamed that day I saw only the men who ln an ulsh had toss d And stlll on the field now lay Out 1n the shadows the soft nlght a1r Wh1spereda requxem everywhele Solemn and sad and slow Telhng of strlfe , . . . 1 1 , . H . . . . ,, , . ll, 1 , . . 1 - 1 ' U - 1 1 , 3 1 1 1 1 1 7 , . Y Y 7 . . , , . 1 1 . . . , - 1 7 ' 9 . 1 1 1 l 7 ' 1 , . Q Y , . . , .1 1 ,1 child, . . . ' Y if ' ' Y, Y 1 1 I I , , ' I ' 1 ss ' ' YY . 9 7 I 1 . . U , . 1 - I Z ' U ' . ' 'Hn b Q 1 - 1 . . , ' 1 ' ' as - 11 . . V l o 1 1 I 7 1 -5-

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IN MEMORIAM SISTER MARY AIMEE BRENT BORN 1833 GRADUATE OF THE VISITATION 1851 PROFESSED RELIGIOUS OF THE VISITATION 1854 DIED AT THE VISITATION CONVENT ST LOUIS DECEMBER 18 1920 The glow of youth fades from thy face But fair and strong the light of Grace Plays through thy heart A very sun No gloom can dim when life is done These lines written by Sxster Mary Aimee Brent to a dear one who through sixty consecrated years had borne with her the burden of the day and its heat are illus trative of the venerated Slster herself in her holy beautiful old age Our Alma Mater has reason to mourn her loss Since 1854 she was the Joy the pride the treasure of the Com munity a l1v1ng expression of the generous humble spirit of St Francis de Sales and of the great souled Foundress of the Visitation Order Rarely gifted as she was she might have shone before the world but she was quite uncon scious of any excellence she was too single minded to contact with the world and she could reach out from her beloved cloister in tenderest charity to those who had need of her They who knew her valued friendship thanked God for its helpfulness and uplift Throughout her life she was intensely interested in the school she labored for it impressed upon it her high ideals prayed prayed that It would form and send forth great strong valiant women to stand for virtue to stand for God She was herself so strong in intellect ano in zeal for the right not aggressive but calmly persistently steadfast Sister Mary Aimee s ancestry was noteworthy in Amer ican annals the Maryland Brents and the h1stor1c Carrolls of Carrollton But thls matters not for the fashion of th1s world passes away It matters everything that unswerv mgly she did the work of God, for God only and with all her heart Our grateful Alma Mater will always hold dear the memory of our venerated Sister Mary Aimee Brent May her soul rest in peace' 7 ' Y 9 l . Y . . . Y D 9 ' ll ' YY ' y - Y v J I 1 ' ' 9 ' Y 5 - think about it. As Superior and Directress she did come in Y - . Q . . . . , ' ll ' . 9 , , , ,, . . , . 1' I a 1 I T . A. u 1 ' Y 91 ' - 1

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And sacrificed life And one thing ending never- No matter the pain Whether loss or gain- Be Faithful Ever. The strams of mus1c came mtensely sweet I saw a lake all brxght W1th moonhght At my feet And mlrrored falr My future there Reflected 1n nts depths I forward leant upon my hand And watched the rlpples from the land As they came 1n ever wxdenmg clrcles And as I knelt Thls truth I felt If I would 1n my l1fe endure If I would keep lt pure And round xt to a perfect sphere Each hour each day each year Must w1den to the vrew Must bear the stram Of th1s refraln A sudden quiet seemed to fall At the end of my reverie. I looked and saw but the old stone wall Where before I had seen the sea O1 battle fields and mountams ta And rrpplmg streams And soft moonbeams Or lrfe stretched out before me The muslc was hushed No water rushed To lts melody rose and followed the old stone wall Whxther It led through the mght There on the ground I found An mstrument bathed ln llght llfted lt gently Holdlng lt near It seemed to me as someone dear I felt It qu1ver And a shrver Ran through me of blnss As echoed came Thls clear refrain Mary Hartnett Smlth lj Cl THE LOCKET Two chlldren were slttmg on a fallen tree trunk dabblmg thelr dusty toes 1n the refreshmg waters of a rlpplmg brook and gazing wlde eyed at the scene around them They were ln the far end of an orchard where each tw1sted old tree had been touched by the m1racle accomplnshlng hand of sprmg untxl they were masses of delicate punk and whlte and of new soft green shoots The lxttle glrl a chubby youngster whose blue checked apron dress was dnrty and br1ar torn and whose fat lxttle legs were scratched and dusty half leaned agamst the boy her tear streaked face on h1s shoulder The boy about th1rteen was slender and ln sprte of hls faded much too small overalls and patched shrrt dxstmguxshed lookmg Suddenly the creak of an approachxng wagon sounded through the st1ll arr Scrambllng hast1ly down the bank the chxldren crowded under the arch of the br1dge wh1le the cart rattled and Jangled over Long rolls of dust swlrled over the edge half stxflmg the trembling children They walted however unt11 the harsh grmdmg of the wheels and the clatter of the horses hoofs along the wmdmng road had dred away before they ventured to seat themselves once more on the bank thls t1me nearer to the safety of their retreat 6 1 ! 9 1 tl S! 1 ' , 11, I a ! . ' , y . ' 9 ' ' ' . I Y 7 ! ! 1 I . . ! - 3 ! , . 7 9 ! 7 7 'T 9 Ever-Ever true. Semper FlCl6llS.,, - ' ,'15. , - ' ! ' y 9 ' 1 .' - 1 1 . 9 1 ' ' , . . . . , 9 Y