Malden High School - Maldonian Yearbook (Malden, MA)

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June 1,1973 Mr. Duffy

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Kevin Wong Rev. David Buzzell 651 Graduate Miss Merris

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SELF-IMPROVEMENT: A COMMENDABLE GOAL Throughout our lives, most of us will endeavor to reach a certain goal. The path we choose may not always be without obstructions. In order to achieve this goal, we must be strong and willing to accept and cope with the barriers that will arise. All of us assmbled here today are not fighting for our survival, as those people in impoverished and wartorn countries are. Thus, we have no reason to be continually concerned about basic survival needs, such as hunger and thirst. These needs can be sufficiently satisfied without any major problems. According to psychologist Abraham Maslow, man’s innate needs are arranged in a hierarchy of priority. After fulfilling the basic needs, man should work to reach higher goals, that is: love, belonging, closeness, and self-esteem. Achieving these needs can be difficult for some people and ele¬ mentary for others. But if each of us is concerned enough about himself and one another, each should willingly recognize the di- lemnas that might develop. After satisfying these needs, a person can strive to reach self-actualization. Some people never satisfy this goal, which for them is only a hope. Einstein, Beethoven, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Lincoln, according to Maslow’s studies, are four exceptional people who have been able to realize this goal. Many people desire and work to attain the characteristics of the self-actualized person, who can perceive reality and live with life courageously. He does not turn away when faced with a threatening problem, but tries to solve the problem without allowing himself to be defeated. He can accept, love, and respect himself with all his faults, and then can easily accept, love, and respect others. Ego-centricity is a trait seldom found in a self- actualized person. Instead, his life centers about the problems of society, to which he dedicates much of his time. He is an individual who directs his life according to rules and values that will improve his existence. Another of his characteristics is his ability to profoundly appreciate the necessary experiences of life, even if he has had these experiencs many times in the past. He has compassion for all that is living and sympathetically identifies with all of humanity. He respects and treats all people as equals, despite their race or religion. In achieving a certain goal, he acknowledges problems and searches for solutions. A self-actualized person realizes that a sense of humor is always important in a person’s life, but at the same time recognizes the seriousness of life. He is capable of a high degree of creativity in all that he may do. These characteristics arc not inherited, but are qualities of a person who has struggled toward the goal of self-actualization. Many of us may never reach this goal; many of us may never try. But reaching this goal can result in our own personal improvement. We may not fully achieve this aspiration, but we can try to attain some of the characteristics emblematic of self-acutalization. We must always be willing to broaden our horizons and develop ourselves. The appreciation of the arts, of knowledge and of people enriches our lives. “For man is happy only in his aspiration to the heights; when he attains his goal, and cools and longs for other distant flights.” — (Kahlil Gibran) Debra Goodwin