Grand View University - Viking Yearbook (Des Moines, IA)

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GIRLS' DORMITORY GYIVINASIUM - 4 -

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Love of Life I know a man who has a Hgreen thumb. He can make the loveliest flowers grow where others fail, and he has his garden filled with bloom from early spring to late fall. He accomplishes this be- cause he has skill and experience but even more because he loves beauty and loves nature. It is his love that makes the plants bloom, for in love lies care and enduring toil. I know a man who works hard and persistently at all times. When Sunday comes he stops working, for Sunday must be a day of rest. But Sunday afternoon is the most irksome time, for an afternoon without labor is boresorne. This persistence comes not from an outer but from an inner compulsion. My friend loves to work, because he loves the things with which he works. I know a man who has nary an enemy and who greets everyone with a friendly smile. He is slow to criticize and he is more apt to see the good than the bad in his fellow man. Always he is willing to lend a helping hand and he takes a keen interest in human affairs. The one thing that irks him is abuse or failure to make use of the golden oppor- tunities of life. He is friendly, because he loves people. I know a man whose life is well balanced and happy. I do not say that he has no faults, for no man is faultless. Neither do I share all his views, but I respect him for his honesty and the intensity of his convictions. I know that he will always be considerate of those who do not agree with him. He has poise and he has grace. I could say many other kind things about him, but I must add that he has one great asset in his kind and positive attitude toward life: he has known how to pick a good wife. When he is able to display the charm and the kindness that is his, the reason is largely that his home- life is harmonious and that he has a capable and understanding helpmate who is a personality in her own right. I wish there were many more like him. By this I do not mean that we should emulate him in all details. That would not only be im- possible, it would be undesirable. Every one of us must pursue his own interest and develop his own talent. But we can all create values, we can all show energy and endurance, we can all be friendly and coopera- tive, we can all show compassion. What is it that makes us creative, kind, cooperative, and compas- sionate? It is a spirit within us, an attitude and a driving force. This can never be created artificially and it cannot be faked. It can only come from a genuine sincerity which is basic in character. St. Paul calls it love and he sings a wonderful hymn to its praise. Love cannot be bought, it cannot be acquired, it can only be possessed-or rather we can be in its possession. We can develop it, however, and we can eliminate that which is its enemy. If this were not so, only the elect could be good. The enemy of a genuine character is selfishness in all its utterances, meanness, ambi- tion, pride, vanity, jealousy, etc. Love of life and love of people, with all which this implies, is the response of men to God. We love, because God first loved us. I John 4:19. J. KNUDSEN. .. 3 -

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