Bessemer High School - Spotlight Yearbook (Greensboro, NC)

Page 29 text:

CLASS HISTORY I937 l94I A SHORT TIME AGO I SUDDENLY FOUND UYSELF SEATED UPON A MAGIC CARPET FLYING AT FULL SPEED FAR BELOW I SAW INTENSE BLACKNESS WHICH SEEMED TO BE A DARK, DISMAL FOREST LOOK ING CLOSER AND CLOSER STILL, THERE IN AN OPENING AMONG THE GIANT BLACK BARKED TREES I NOTICED A GROUP OF FRIGHTENED WILDEYED AND EXCITED CHILDREN WHO SEEMED ALHOST PANIC STRIC KEN FROM FEAR OF THE GRIM LOOKING ONE STANDING BEFORE THEM AS I LOOKED BACKWARD, FOR MY CARPET WAS MOVING SWIFTLY, THEY SOMEHOW SUMMONED COURAGE ENOUGH TO PUSH ONE OF THEIR MEMBERS TO THE FRONT, TREMBLING WITH AS MY FRESHMAN MORE, FOR THEY THEN ANOTHER AND ANOTHER, VERY UNSTEADY AND FEAR IT WAS THEN THAT I RECOGNIZED THEM CLASSUATES. REMEMBERING THIS I SAW THEM NO WERE HIDDEN FROM VIEW BY THE THICK FOLIAGE OF THE FOREST AS HY CARPET FLEW STEADILY ONWARD, I GAZED DOWNWARD AND NOTICED THAT THE SCENERY WAS BECOMING CLEARER AND THE TREES WERE GREENER AND MORE ALIVE THAN BEFORE AND THEN TDMY AMAZEMENT, CHILDREN WHO LOOKED RATHER FAMILIAR STRAININC MY EAGER EYESQ I NDTICED THAT IT wAS THE SAME GROUP I HAD FIRST SEEN ONLY THEY HAD BECOME A LITTLE TALLER AND MORE ACT OF CHOOSING THEIR LEADERS: ONLY WITH A MORE RER AND WITHOUT FEAR AGAIN I RECOGNIZED THE THEY CHOSE AS MAUDE LEE MORRISON, PRESIDENT OF ASSURED MAN ONES WHO OUR SOPHCMORE INTELLIGENT LOOKING: IT SEEMED THAT THEY WERE AGAIN IN THE CLASS, THEBA WARD, VICE PRESIDENTQ AND SADIE HILLD SECRETARY AND TREASURER AS MY CARPET FLEW ON AND ON THE GROUP BECAME SMALLER AND SUALLER UNTIL THEY TDD WERE HIDDEN FROM SIGHT BY THE TREES, NDT ONCE HAD MY CARPET CHANGED ITS RATE OF SPEED BUT IT SEEMED T0 BE GRADUALLY LOWERING ITS SELF FOR I COULD SEF GREEN GRASS, FLOWERS AND BIRDS FLYING FROM TREE TO TREE' I WAS NOT SURPRISED WHEN THE SAME GROUP cAME INTO VIEW THE THIRD TIME MY CARPET HAD DESCENDED NEAR ENOUGH So THAT I COULD HEAR LAUGHTER AND SHOUTS FROM THE MERRY GRDUP AT THE HEAD OF THE GROUP STDDD A VERY SHORT WOMAN, NO TALLER THAN HER PUPILSI SHAKING A TINY FINGER AT NUMERDUS BOYS AND GIRLS As I NOTED THE GAYETY OF EVERYONE I THEN REMEMBERED PARTIES, PICNICS9 A BANQUET AND MANY OTHER GALA AFFAIRS THAT OUR JUNIOR CLASS HAD ENJDYED VERY ANxIDUSLY I AWAITED THE ARRIVAL OF THE GROUP FOR THE FOURTH TIME FAR BELOW ME IN THE MIDDLE OF A BEAUTIFUL GRASS COVERED PARK SAT A GROUP OF VERY DIGNIFIED STUDENTS No LONGER WERE THEY GAY AND FRIVOLOUST INSTEAD GRAVE AND SERIOUS NY CARPET HAD BECOME SD LOW THAT I COULD SEE THEM vERY DIST INCTLY AS WELL AS HEAR THEM TALKING AS THEY SOLEMNLY EL ECTED THEIR CLASS OFFICERS THEY USED EVERY RULE OF PARLIAMBP TARY PROCEEDURE, FOR IN FRONT OF THEM STDDD A vERY PROUDI DIGNIFIED AND CLEAR voIcED TEACHER READY TO CORRECT THEIR

Page 31 text:

CLASS HISTORY CONTINUED EVERY MISTAKE WITH THE GREATEST ASSURANCE AND DIGNITY IMAGINABLE DID THEBA WARD TAKE HER HONORABLE POSITION AS PRESIDENT OF THE SENIOR CLASS J B GARD R SEOAME VICE PRESIDENT, HAROLD BUNTING, SECRETARY, AND DOROTHY WAY, TREASURER I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO IANDI SUDDENLY CRASH! THEN SILENCE I FOUND MYSELF SITTING RAINPULLY ON THE FLOOR BESIDE M BED WITH THE CHILL NIGHT AIR SWEEPING ABOUT ME EALIzING WHAT HAD HAPPENED GRAWLED SLOWLY INTO MY WARM COVER AND TRIED TO GO TO SLEEP WHILE THINKING OF MY FOUR YEARS IN HIGH SCHOOL AS I HAD SEEN THEM IN MY DREAM WORDS WORDS ARE CONTROLLERS OF YOUR DESTINY THE! CAN TAKE YOUR HEART AND TWIST IT UNTIL YOU CRY OUT IN AGONY AND WONDER THEY CAN SEAR YOUR SOUL WITH THE ANGUISH OF THE CONDEMNED OR THEY CAN GIVE YOU PEACE AND LACTING JOY THE TWIST OF A TONGUE AND A SOUND CAN SPEIL YOUR FATE THE SCRATCH OF A PEN MAY BE THE DEATH KNELL OF YOUR DOOM WORDS ARE THE SLAVES OF MEN AND THE MASTERS WORDS SHEEP IN THE HOI MAD QUARREL OF LOVERS W RDS SING N THE SOOTH'NG TONES OF COMFORT WORDS TINKLY IN THE LAUGH OF A CLOWN U RDS RING IN THE THUNDERINF VOICE OF THF OF THE OYING IN THE CLASH OF WORDS NATIONS MUST RISE AND PALI GODS MUST ROCK UPON THEIR PEDESTALS AND MEN LP AND N THEY cAN MAKE A Moe SHRINK AND COAER IN TERROR THEY CAN STUMBLE EALTERING FROM THE VERY DOOR OF IRE DEAD AND BRING WITH THEM PEACE, OR GRIEF, OR PENITENOE DOWN THROUGH THE JUNGLES OF WORLD HISTORY THEY eLAzE THEIR PATH AND STRIKE AT THE HEARTS OF PEOPLE WITH THEIR MESSAGES 'LI8ERTY, EQUALITY, FRATERNITYI OR DEATHIH AND THE GUILLOTINE CRASHED 'I ONLY REGRET THAT I HAVE BUT ONE LIFE TO GIVE FOR MY COUNTRY ' AND A BRAVE SOUL SLIPPED AWAY 'BUT AS FOR ME, GIVE ME LIBERTY, OR GIVE ME DEATH1' AND A NATION ROSE FLAHING FROM THE SOUL or THE PATRIOT WHISPERING IN THE DYING BREATH or THE MARTYR STIRRINGT STUMBLINC, STRIVING, LAUGHING, GRIPPING9 YEARNING THEY SPRING FROM THE INExHAuSTAeLE FOUNTAIN OF THE MIND O U O I 11 . V' ' Y S R . I ' . .J o .P 0 0 I . 0 ' 1 - PROPHET. WORDS CAN DESTROY OR BRING SMILES TO THE FACE RISE I ILL. o