Balmoral Hall School - Optima Anni Yearbook (Winnipeg, Manitoba Canada)

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7, 5lGN-E TS FORGET ME NOT Land ho! The cry, ringing through the early morn- ing mist, was caught up and spread over the deck, finally reaching the ears of the voyageurs sleeping in the crowded hold. A general clamour grew as shaking off their drowsiness, they jostled and shoved their way uo the ladder to the deck, eager for a glimpse of their new land after the long voyage from France. The New World! God be praised! Their excited cries echoed over the water. Although the hold was nearly empty now, its atmosphere remained oppressive, afford- ing no relief to the few people who had remained below. The debris littering the floor made free movement impossible, and the odour resulting from the two month voyage was suffocating. In a small alcove, a young girl shook her head and sighed as the last excited group disappeared up the ladder. In spite of the stench and filth, she welcomed a chance to compose herself before they landed, without the accustomed noise and confusion. Now as the door overhead closed, she sat in the semi- darkness lost in thought. Could it really be only two months ago the she, Helene Pascal, had bidden farewell to her home, her family, indeed, to her youth, and had set sail from France? It seemed an eternity had passed, and yet she could recall vividly, with nostalgia and some bitterness every detail of the events leading to her de- parture. She had been setting the table for dinner when her father had entered the cottage with 1 Q f N 'A 3? 5 as X R if his news. The little ones had run to meet him, and her mother, stirring the soup over the immense fireplace, had smiled her cus- tomary greeting. But that day, instead of swinging the childen to his shoulders, he had stood framed in the doorway, and taking a deep breath, had recited the news which had changed her life so drastically. Helene could still see his face and hear his excited voice as he related the story which was being spread through the village: Mon- sieur Talon, just returned from the colony across the sea, New France fdid not the very name suggest the youth and promise of the land?l was offering to pay one thou- sand francs to any family who would send a daughter to the colony. It seemed this new land, so wealthy in so many respects, lacked wives for her men, and mothers to raise the children who would become the heirs of her bounty. Would it not be a wonderful thing for Helene to travel to this New France, this land of opportunity and so play a part in building the king's empire? Until a suit- able husband was found, she would be able to live with Uncle Gaspar and Aunt Therese, who had sailed to Gaspe ten years previously. And so, scarcely before she had grasped the import of her father's words Helene had found her life completely altered. Of course, there had been a great deal of talk about the wonderful opportunity and experience her venture would provide, but she knew that the offer of money had been the main factor in her parents' decision and she had been hurt and indignant that her parents would sell her thus. Although they lived in need, like so many French peasants. she had always felt aloof from the grasping .Yin

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VAIEDICTORY There is a tide in the affairs of men. Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune . . Y' 'Julius Caesari' Though Form VI completes a twelve years segment of our life labelled Hschool-days , the end of this year for us is really a be- ginning. We have been preparing ourselves for the unknown fields of business, nursing or university, where perhaps some of us will make important contributions through science and the arts or in practical ways, to the com- munity where we find ourselves. At this turning point or tide in the careers and the lives of those of us who will be graduating let us review and assess our years at Balmoral Hall and by doing so try to enrich our future with some plan to carry on what we have learned here. No matter at what age we entered the school, and some of us started in kindergar- ten, we wereall eventually welcomed with a riotous Octo-ber ceremony called Initiation. In our final year at the school we were given the responsibility of running and planning this School Captain Head Girl event as well as other such s-tudent pro- JUDITH DOWLER NANCY LITTLE grammes. We have found many and various ways to serve our school. These opportunities have included singing in the school choir, serving on the library and magazine committees and playing on School or House teams. The house system at Balmoral Hall has given us an excellent means of working to- gether towards a common goal. When we were too young to participate in various school committees, we could serve our house and the school by keeping our shoes shiny and our names out of the Conduct Book. Some of us were called upon to be house heads or school leaders and some of us received the great honour of being appointed a prefect. It is not for us to judge how successful we have been but the experience of self-discipline and the opportunity to lead others has been both challenging and rewarding. These experiences we will take with us and hope to us in new fields. By the time we have reached Form VI, many of us have had a share in resident life. Boarding at school is one of the most interesting and rewarding experiences a girl of our age can enjoy. Who can forget the Christmas dinners, trips to the Ballet, to the Theatre Centre, and the impromptu pizza parties? No matter how far we spread afield what fun it will always be our B.H. friends all across the world. The memories of school prayers, the Christmas Carol Service, and the stirring an- thems the choir has sung, rush back to me as I reminisce and I know that the Closing Even- song and the last day of school prayers will mean more than ever to the graduating class, as it is we who must say farewell and you who must carry on. Even with the gateway to the future open before us, we take this backward glance at our happy days at this school. Be sure that in future years we will return for opening days, for special events and for House prayers. Whether or not this high moment in our life Hleads on to fortune we won't forget our school's traditions, its history and all that Balmoral Hall has given to us. JUDITH DOWLER - School Captain Iffllllt

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and misery of the other families. In her home there had been poverty, yes, but it had not erased their love for one another. Fighting back her tears, she had run for solace, and there, as she wandered along her beloved paths, she had forced herself to accept the future which had been thrust upon her. Remembering the needs of her small sisters and brothers, she had come to think of her venture not as a burden to be borne with resentment, but as a sacrifice to the love which her home and family held for her. Indeed, her parents' talk of oppor- tunity and challenge had ill hidden their pangs of conscience and sense of loss, for they felt genuine sorrow at sending their daughter to face the unknown alone. Had times been better - a larger harvest, a less demanding monseigneur, perhaps .... But such was not the case, and as preparations for her departure continued, the thought that she was sacrificing herself, for her family had partially compensated for her grief in leaving them. But Andre! Nothing could ever compen- sate for the sense of loss she felt at parting from him. Sighing, she reached beneath her sleeping blanket, and pulled out a small Bible, her only tangible memory of home. Pressed carefully between the pages at which she opened it, was a small bouquet of with- ered blue blossoms, forget-me-nots, a fare- well gift from her Andre. As she gazed rev- erently at them, a wave of resentment welled up in her, not against her family, nor against the hardship of her journey, but rather against her new home and the unknown man who would one day become her husband. It was they who had taken her away from France, preventing her inevitable betrothal to Andre and her subsequent happiness. No, grief for her family could be softened by sac- rifice, but nothing could compensate for her separation from Andre. The delighted shouts of those on deck awakened her from her reverie, and her awareness of the rubbish and foul air around her returned. Carefully replacing her precious Bible, she stood up and picked her way through the belongings strewn on the floor to the ladder. She must see New France soon- er or later she told herself, in spite of her effort to sound resigned, she was surprised by the curiosity she felt as she made her way up the ladder. Once on deck, she found a place by the rail and looked out across the sea. Yes, there against the horizon was a black rise which must be the land. Is that what everyone is excited about then? she asked her neighbour, trying to Tcn sound scornful. Yet she could not explain the strange exhilaration which she felt aris- ing in her - surely it was the effect of the unaccustomed fresh air. As the distant shore loomed closer, she became openly interested in spite of herself. For the first time since leaving France, she forgot her homesickness and seasickness, and found herself wondering about the future in- stead of dwelling on the past. What would this New France really be like? In the distance she discerned with de- light the forests which lined the shore. The thought of trees in the New World was new to her, and she found it strangely comforting. Her thoughts turned to her uncle and his family. Would they be very much changed? Ten years had passed since she had last seen them but she could clearly recall her cousins, Jeanine and Pierot, who had been her childhood playmates. It would be plea- sant to have someone her own age to help her at first. She looked self-consciously at her dress, torn and travel-stained from the voyage, and remembered how proud of it she had been in St. Malo. A gift from Mon- sieur Talon to all the girls sailing to New France, it had been her first new dress, but now . . . Whatever would her cousins think of her! She caught herself in surprise, wondering that her thoughts could turn to pleasing someone other than Andre. Yet, as the ship drew into the harbour at Gaspe, she could not help but think about the family and future which awaited her on the shore. The crowds lining the dock cheered as the boat entered the bay, for the arrival of a ship from France was always an event. The passengers alighted first, eyes wide with expectancy, taking in as much of their new world as they could. In spite of a last effort at indifference and scorn, Helene found her- self as excited as her companions, and thrilled at the sights and sounds of her new home. Making her way somewhat timidly through the crowd, she heard someone call her name, and turning, found herself confronted by Uncle Gaspard and Aunt Therese, a little older but otherwise the same, and welcoming her as their own daughter. Behind them were Jeanine and Pierot - how handsome he had grown! - and several smaller cousins whom she had never met. Due introductions were made, and then she was swept to their wagon amid a barrage of questions and laughter. She was installed in the wagon and they were on their way to the homestead before Pierot, prompted by a younger sister, remem- bered the gift they had brought. With some embarrassment, he handed her a sprig of delicate pink blossoms.