Milford High School - Spartan Yearbook (Milford, NH)

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Autograph'

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THE SENIOR YEARBOOK offer. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow had this to say about knowledge: An enlightened mind is not hoodwinkedg it is not shut up in a gloomy prison till it thinks the walls of its own dungeon the limits of the universe, and the reach of its own chain the outer verge of intelligence. The window of challenge is beckoning to us today from all phases of life. Our his- tory course this year has made us particularly aware of the challenge which the national affairs have for young people. So many of us are prone to call politics a game through which crooked politicians are operating our state and national governments. I grant that there are many defects in our system of government. Yes, it is true that in Washington billions of dollars are apparently being spent needlessly because of the bureaucratic system. Maybe we are right when we fight for less national security and more international secur- ity. Our democracy is not perfect, we don't even pretend that it is. Democracy, rather than being an actuality, is an ideal toward which we are striving. Our government is what we are as individuals. I think that any young person with enough gumption to enter politics today deserves credit and encouragement rather than hindrance and discour- agement. For those of us who can't enter politics actively, there is the challenge that we should read and try to fully comprehend what is happening in our state and national capitals and vote intelligently for those who are to govern for us. Another challenge is Communism in our country and other countries. Benjamin Dis- raeli once said, The longing for fraternity can nggpr be satisfied, but under the sway of a common fatherf, We have tried in vain toncompfomise with Communism. Can God- loving people live side by side with Communists 'whose Cod is hate, greed, and power? The answer to that question must be settled peacefully or otherwise by our generation. A third window of life is beauty. There are so many bad things said about our country that we overlook much of its beauty. There is the quiet beauty in the basic generosity of the American people for all underprivileged. This can be evidenced by the American Red Cross, cancer drive, CARE organization, American Heart Society and countless other agencies. There is the beauty of music, art, and poetry which can add great depth to our lives if we learn to appreciate them. There is the beauty of true love which can only be found in the giving of ourselves. Yes, beauty is an all-pervading pres- ence. The ocean, the mountains, the clouds the heavens, the stars, the rising and setting of the sun -all overflow with beauty. This beauty is so precious that it is pitiful to think of our going through life in the midst of it and yet blind to it. With appreciation of beauty, life ceases to be monotonous and dull because each new day brings new beauty. A fourth window is philosophy or religion. It is so hard for us young people to be- lieve in Cod when there is talk of the destruction of the world with the splitting of an atom or of a third World War when many of us have lost loved ones in the war just ter- minated. Yet there must be a faith to which we can cling, because without one, there is no point in our living. Some of us worship Cod one way, others have an entirely different interpretation of Him. Our generation must realize that there is no one religious denomination which has the monopoly of goodness. For every man, that religion is good which makes him gentle, upright and kind. Though our thoughts may differ in regard to religion, the important factor is that we do have a religious faith of some sort. Life, what hast thou to offer me? Life, what have we - the future teachers, parents, and citizens of the world -to offer you? Tonight we finish to begin our lives, and let us hope that we can prove ourselves worthy of the opportunities which you as parents and friends have given us.

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THE SOUHEGAN NATIONAL BANK MILFORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE O O O G C