Ashland High School - Echoes Yearbook (Ashland, ME)

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1949 Etboes of A. lf. 6' L THQ SUMMER ,. When I get up in the morning. The dew is on the grass: I stand in a doorway crooning- For summer has come at last. Cows are in the meadow, Trout are in the stream, Deer feeding in the forest, ' Is it all a dream? When evening shadows are falling And there is nothing else to do, The whip-o-wills are calling , For the long, long day is through. Betty Howe DAYS I'D LIKE TO LIVE OVER It was the beginning of a perfect day- no clouds, a happy atmosphere, and plenty of sunshine. As I looked' out across our small and happy city I could see people hustling about and greeting each other with smiles. Smiles that seemed to say, l'm glad to be alive, aren't you? Yes, it was going to be a nice day and I kind of hated to get up out of my nice warm bed. Looking arounduntil my eyes came to rest on the foot of my bed I saw where my feet should have been. To my amazement, as you can imagine, they were missing, but they were soon found, snuggled closely against my wann and happy body. Again as I looked out of the window I could see places that I had often gone to as a boy. I could even see the corner lot. The corner lot: does that strike a familiar chord in your mind? It doesn't. Well, I should have known better than to ask you a question you know nothing about. As I was saying, the corner lot does strike a familiar chord to me because the corner lot brings back mem- ories of days that I'd like to live over. It was a bright sunny afternoon, the same . 5515515 . .4 11554. A as this afternoon will be, and we were all playing football on the corner lot. I was the quarterback that day and I called a play that went something like this: Myself: Let's try a quarterback sneak. I'll take the' ball' from lim, who'll play center. and he can go charging through the line and clear a path' for me. ' lim: What if I can't clear a path? Those boys are big and they play rough. you might get knocked for a loop. Myself: You worry about getting the path cleared and I'll worry about the rest. lim: Okay. you're the boss, count me m. y Myself: Good enough, let's go, gang. Signals-62. 85. 36. Hikelf' And there goes Iirn right ahead of me, how to mow 'em down, Jimmy boy. Oh, Oh! There's one he missed. He's coming right at me. I can't dodge him. We're going to hit. Oh, my side! What makes my side pain so? Where am I? I-I can't see. What's happening to me? There I can start to make things out now. They're sort of hazy but they're getting clearer all the time. Mom! Dad! What are you doing here? Why are you looking at me in that way? Where am I? 1 . lt was this question that started me look- ing at my environment. I wish now that I had never looked around me then, for what I saw-nearly made me cry. A small, desolate room with four bare walls, one of which had a large bay window overlooking the city. And those people, all dressed in white looking at you as if to say. It's all over now. son. death is coming. Death! That word struck me like a hammer striking a bell. It rang in my ears until I thought my head would split and I think that it would have if my father hadn't spoken up

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Eclmes of A. M .Si 1949 . . in Ashland as in every community, because ECIIICOTICIIS our most precious asset is our children and young people. They will, in a few years. be the men and women who will carry on WHY WE NEED ,A PARENT-TEACHERS the work of the world. The kind of educa- ASSOCIATION IN ASHLAND, tion that they get will determine the kind Of all the institutions devoted to the wel- fare of children and youth there are two which stand high above all others. These are the home and the school. For parents as well as for teachers the needs and ambi- tions of the young people rank first among all interests. What would be more natural than that an organization of parents and teachers in our community should join forces to work together for their common good. This organization would be a Parent- Teachers Association. Alice McLellan Bimey founded the Na- tional Congress of Parents and Teachers, and to her memory there is erected a me- morial ,on the high school grounds at Mari- etta, Georgia, her girlhood home. This me- morial was erected in nineteen hundred and forty-two and serves as a perpetual tribute to the vision of a great parent-teacher leader. Alice Birney realized that chi1dren's needs will not wait and that many heads are better than one in determining those needs. She also knew, as do we, that the world needs to learn exactly what demo- cracy is, and the best way to learn this is to see it in action in our own small communi- ties. The objects of this association are to pro- mote the welfare of children and youth in home, school, church and community: to raise the standards of home life: to secure adequate laws for the care and protection of our youth: to bring into closer relation the home and the school, that parents and teachers may co-operate intelligently in the training of the child: to develop between educators and the general public such united efforts as will secure for every child the highest advantage in physical, mental. social and spiritual education. We need a Parent-Teachers Association of world we will live in. In this Atomic Age it is more important than ever before that people learn to -work and live together to understand each other's problems. What better way is there for such an understand- ing to begin than .in an organization that is linked with the National Congress of Par- ents and Teachers whose voice is heard in counties, states and in the nation. Charles Coffin NEW EQUIPMENT During the school year Ashland High School has acquired some new equipment. This includes a new screen to go with the movie machine, a recorder and an inter- communication system. This recorder is a very interesting and valuable addition to our equipment. The teachers use it in speech classes to record speeches and to correct speech defects. The eighth grade presented a recorded program for assembly. We think more classes should use the recorder. Recently an inter-communication system has been installed. There are loud speakers in Mrs. Tilley's room. the main room, eighth grade room, Freshman room. the Agricultural Building, Mrs. Bartlett's room and the basement. Any of the teachers who are in the rooms where these are, can talk with Mr. MacLaugh1in in the office. Mr. MacLaughlin can talk to the teachers in just one room or to all the rooms at once. lf he needs anyone in the office he can call them and not have to leave the office. This system is a great convenience in giving notices and in announcing other information.

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Echoes of A. li. .SZ 7949 and said, Feel alright now, son? Those words that poured out of my father's mouth were to me like the music that soothes the savage beast and I felt like jumping up and kissing him. I tried to but I couldn't and it was then that I noticed that part of my body was in a cast. The cast extended from my waist to my knees. It was three days later, when mom and dad came again to see me that I received my hardest news to digest. It was then I was told that I could never again walk. The doctor told me that later on I might be able to ride in a wheelchair. But I had lots of courage left and I made up my mind that I would walk again. Well today is my happy day. I've waited over five years for this day and at last it's here. Yes, here they come. There's dad and mom, my private nurse, and last of all the doctor who made this all possible. the doctor who mended my two broken thigh bones. The doctor who for the first ti.me in his life is going to see a man 23 years old, sentenced to life in a wheelchair happy to get in one. Yes, today I take my first ride in a wheelchair. Everyday that I get into my wheelchair from now on I'll always remember this day. and though I can never walk again I can always think of days l'd like to live over. Carlton Morin THE RIGHT WAY Follow in my footsteps As we slowly move along. Onward down the path, Follow gently as a fawn. Now the path leads to the water. As on a hot and balmy day. Follow quickly: do not falter As we go upon our way. Listen friend and I will tell you. My advice is good they say. Travel down that straight and narrow As you go upon your way. F. l. Morris MY ABNORMAL CONDITION Over and over I ask myself the same question. why does it have to happen to me. What have I done to deserve this? And though I feel quite abused and pity myself often, I see no way out. Secretly I blame my family for my con- dition though actually they have little or nothing to do with it, except that they keep me well aware of the fact that if something is not done and soon then they will have me on their hands for the rest of their lives. In other words, they believe that my con- dition is a hindrance to my ever getting married. I like to think they are exaggera- ting about me: I certainly hope they are anyhow. Not that I care about getting married, but I do know of many girls in my same condition who got married and have lived happily ever since. And I don't believe their husbands minded the way they were. But there really is no reason for my family to carry on so about me, especially to the point where I am nearly in hysterics. What to do about my condition? I haven't the least idea. Heaven only knows I have tried everything. I guess l'm just a victim of circumstances. I've even been to a doc- tor and he gave me a detailed plan of in- structions to follow but because of my lack of will power they were of little help to me. Of course, I should improve my will power but I've tried to so many times before and the only results were la series of broken resolutions. At times I console myself with the thought that God meant for me to be this way and He has a special reason for assign- ing me to such a condition. That's pleasant to think about, for a while anyhow, until the next time my family starts discussing me. and then I somehow cannot find the right words to explain to them that I have acquired my condition by a divine right. Perhaps my main trouble is that I am looking for a too easy way to cure myself. Because often-times I have been tempted by the alluring ads in newspapers and