Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts - Mohawk Yearbook (North Adams, MA)

Page 31 text:

not for the sake of giving us this opportunity to bask, but rather to give us an opportunity to expand onward and upward. So we, just as the ivy plant, are prepared to venture into the world to mike our own way. We are prepared to show our maturity by expanding into greater fields, by asserting ourselves as individuals. But in doing this, it is not necessary for us to scver ourselves from those ideals and concepts which go toward making a better person. Rather, it is imperative that we utilize all that we have been taught. We are not an isolated entity, we are an emlicdiment of the ideals, the aspirations, the hopes, and dreams of many. just as the roots are a part of the ivy plant, so too, the goals and ideals which we have adopted from those people so closely associated with us are now a part of us. These standards have formed into a pattern - a way of life. Now is the opportunity for us to enforce this way of life. Our roots ask no other reward than this! Cecilia Conroy 2 9

Page 30 text:

IVY UHHTIUH ACH YEAR the seniors plant a sprig of ivy - each year they identify them- selves with the firm, green plant which pushes ever upward, which grows ever outward. We, the Seniors, see strong parallelisms between the storms and winter months which this hearty plant must endure and those hardships which we will have to face in the future. We see overwhelming likenesses between the fresh color and robust nature of this tender plant and our own vigorous natures and youthful outlooks. We hope in future years to expand, to grow, to reach ever upward and outward just as this small sprig of ivy will grow and ex- pand. However, in considering this ivy plant, so fragile to the sight, and yet so enduring, we must not forget its roots - the roots which support its growth and make it all that it is and will become. These roots never see the sun, never catch the eye of the admiring onlooker. Often their very presence is forgotten because they are not in view. Only that portion of the plant above the ground will bask in the delighted gaze of those who will pass it in years to come. Yet, it is the strength of these roots which nourishes this plant- which gives it its beauty and its strength. No, let us not ,forget our roots - the force which has pushed us up from that small, weak plant we once were to what we are today, and what we hope to become in the future. These roots are the ideas and ideals which have been instilled in us by our friends, our faculty and, more particularly, our parents. These people have played a major role in the development of our character. Each has helped mould us into what we hope to be. The understanding and patience of our friends, the encouragement of our teachers, the many sacrifices of our parents have been 28

Page 32 text:

EENIUH CLASS HISTUHY Heflections Mirror, mirror on the wall reflect the past, tell us all THE DEEP, dark past began to unfold and 1943 came into view. On the bumpy road to knowledge twenty-six peagreen freshmen garbed in their best zoot suits succumbed to S. T. C. with Dew-ey eyed innocence, stout hearts, and knocking knees. The costume of the day was soon in for a drastic change as the Sophomores contrived, planned, and plotted for initiation of this little band of unwarped minds. At this early date our ingenuity and originality came to bud as we followed the satanic Sophomores' instructions and paraded college halls garbed as Mother Goose characters. Out of the mists of '43 loomed a mountain and a day never to be forgotten, for on this day was born the slogan, Comb the Mountains as we searched flora and fauna for one of our erring freshmen. After mastering such terms as tibia, fibula, tuberosity of the ischium, Polis and Idia , and cleaning up the neighborhood collecting weeds on nature tours and learning all about sonata forms, the Freshmen decided it was time to shrug the academic life. Collaborating with the Sophs they sponsored the Fall Fantasy and glided over the Blue Room dance floor. Our annual Stunt Night found these twenty-six Frosh portraying lively gremlins who tormented studious freshmen. Little did the Faculty know that these gremlins would soon come to overrun the whole college! At last the horror of exams, Blue Books, and German verbs was surpassed and the first phase of college life was over and left to be recorded in the annals of time. - Now 1944 entered in as '43 faded from sight. This year found our ranks diminished almost to half. Some had fallen by the wayside, some never recovered from exams, some had gone off to war and some, ah perish the thought, had turned to marriage! But the remainder were a plucky sort and harkened to the words of Be strong and of good courage. We quickly set to work in our role of Sopho- mores and rubbed our hands with glee as we harassed nervous Freshmen during their initiation period. During this year the neighboring community of Williams- town assumed a new and vital interest. After our class sponsored the Harvest Moon formal, V-12's Navy wings of gold and letters marked free -all became part of our well rounded and integrated personalities. As the year progressed Smoke Gets in Your Eyes and Rum and Coca Cola were songs that imparted new and personal meanings for our Sophomore sophisticated. But along with the play must come the work, so we learned as we first set foot in the training 30