Girls High School - Yearbook (Reading, PA)

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Thy fate is the common fate of all, Into each life some rain must fall, Some days must be dark and dreary. d the reached a mountain beyond And so they journeyed on until one ay y which the shepherd must go alone. Following the trails he had beaten for ' ' ' ' ' -f -df orld, while he-went singing down them, his tlock returned to the work '1 ay w the other side. That little company has long since vanished while, Daily the tides of life go ebbing and flowing beside themg Thousands of throbbing hearts, where theirs are at rest foreverg Thousands of tolling hands, where theirs have ceased their labors, Thousands of weary feet, ' ' But still, if you pause to listen, there is the voice of one singing. The man who is best serving his generation by promoting peace, above where theirs have completed their Journey: the din of battle, hears his voice 1- Stronger than steel ls the sword of the Spirit! Swifter than arrows The light of the truth is! Greater than anger Is love and subdueth l To the youth just buckling on life's armor he sings: Write on your doors the sayings wise and old, Be bold! be bold! and everywhere-be bold. Be not too bold! yet better the excess Than the defect, better the more than less. Beter like Hector in the field to die 'Than like a perfumed Paris, turn and fly. And to the old man nearing the last mile stone: - Let him not boast who puts his armor on As he who puts it off, the battle done. Those whose lives are only a tale of feverish bargaining he bids come away from The market place, the eager love of gain Whose aim is vanity, and whose end is pam. To those who are dreamers of dreams he sings :- O sweet illusion of the brain! O sudden thrills of fire and frost! The world is bright while ye remain And dark and drear when ye are lost. And not only to separate hearts does he sing, for when tasks are done and ' 1 cares forgotten, the home circle hears his p ea: - 17

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7, They were noise-weary ofthe clashing cymbals and big drums, and nothing could seem better worth the hearing than the melodies'which brought sweet order into life's confusion. Then, too, this songster understood their every- day cares, cares which wear the heart and waste the body, and he bade them Fear not in a world like this And thou shalt know ere long, Know how sublime a thing it is To suffer and be strong. It was not the wish of his heart to spur them on to deeds of valor, or to be their leader on a long quest in search of another Holy Grail. Rather than show them the sun-rise joy of Heaven, he would have them see the sun set peace of earth. And so the shepherd sang his way along, while those who loved him best, followed in his train, treasuring in their hearts a faith and love best expressed by some of his own words: The words that dropped from his sweet tongue, As pleasant song, at morning sung, Strengthened our hearts, or heard at night Made all our slumbers soft and light. And then the flaming arrow of death came upon his only earthly treas- ures, and the father, in this case, was called upon to give in tears and pain the flowers he most did love. And not only were the children of his life taken, but far down in the valley of shadowl' they heard his voice telling: i'And with them the being beauteous Who unto my youth was given More than all things else to love me And is now a saint in heaven. ' For a long time the music was silent as the shepherd tarries and wrestles in this mystical temple of sorrow but one bright day he came again to his flock, and he was singing: ' Oh, though oft depressed and weary All my cares are laid aside, If l but remember only, Such as these have lived and died. Although the memory of this subdued sorrow was always present, he never allowed it to become repining. He might have sung My life is cold, anddark, and dreary, lt rains and the wind is never Weary, but his symphonies never ended with a throb, and in self-reproof, and encour- agement to his comrades he finished- Be still, sad heart, and cease repining, Behind the clouds is the sun, still shining. 16

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I hope, as no unwelcome guest, At your warm tire-place, when lamps arc lighted, To have my place reserved among th e rest, Nor stand as one unsought and uninvitedf' Even the little children he hids:- , Come to me, 0 ye children, And whisper in my ear What the birds and winds are singing ln your sunny atmosphere. And for all who listen, V The night shall be Hlled with music, And the cares that infest the day Shall 'told 'their tents like the Arabs And as silently steal away. Surely the man who asked God to 'fsend us 1 send us men to match our plains, was wishing to fectly fullilled the commandment given us to heart to the Lord. 'X Q Q hen to match our mountains, r Longfellow, who most per- live making melody in your