Montgomery Bell Academy - Bell Yearbook (Nashville, TN)

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OUR COUNTRY HAS BEEN AT WAR FOR YOUR ENTIRE LIFE. IF PEACE CAME, HOW DO YOU THINK IT WOULD AFFECT OUR LIVES? ‘Throughout ours lives the ominous threat of war has been present. Our generation has never known peace; but, isolated as we are from the Southeast Asian conflict, the harsh realities of war never reach us. In our isolated situation, we will never fear war as much as those people who have endured it. We fool ourselves into believing that the war will never reach us directly; but, when it does it will be too late. Recently, people have become aware of the horrors of America ' s wars, and war ' s end seems imminent. “Would peace affect our lives? Probably no more than war does. Peace will bring us a pride acquired by ending a war that has lasted almost all of our lives, but true peace is never so simple. Peace in Southeast Asia is a step in the right direction, but world peace for all generations must be an effort of humanity, an effort which will take hard work by all the peoples of the earth.” MORGAN ENTREKIN — Junior Class President

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HOW DO YOU THINK THAT THE NEW LEGISLATION GIVING EIGHTEEN YEAR OLDS ALL THE RIGHTS OF ADULTS IS GOING TO AFFECT YOUR TEENAGE LIFE? Education is growth; education is not preparation for life; it is life itself. — John Dewey “Now that the eighteen year old, the high school senior, is legally an adult, the cliche that high school is merely a time for preparing for college is absurd. The student enters as a boy, but must graduate as an adult. “MBA helps the students mature in many ways. It promotes a sense of honor, of self-discipline, and of community responsibility in its students; yet, the most important way in which MBA helps its students mature is through the many challenges each student must meet. “Whether it be on the football field or on the stage, in an Honor Council meeting or at a desk 3AM on theme night, the student gains valuable self-knowledge. He learns what he can and cannot do, what is within his soul. Hopefully, he finds a man.” BUCK COLE — Senior Class President

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IS IDEALISM STILL ALIVE IN OUR WORLD TODAY? ' ‘Today, being constantly subjected to reports of people who seem to have lost all sense of the high principles of man such as honor and integrity, I have often contemplated whether or not man is losing his sense of idealism. To me, this lowering of values can be attributed in part to the news media. Although the news media is an intricate part of our society, it often tends to take a one-sided view. For example, I recall the media’s coverage of the hundreds of men who left the country to avoid the draft; in contrast, I heard hardly one word spoken of the thousands upon thousands of men who, even though objecting to the war, entered the military service instead of losing their integrity. As a result, it occurred to me that perhaps there is more idealism in our lives than we realize. “One phase of our lives in which the higher principles of pride are very evident is sports. To be a good competitor in athletics, a person must have a desire to do his best, a desire to maintain his own honor in fair competition. Without these ideals, sports would become worthless. Another example of idealism much closer to us at MBA is the MBA Honor System. This system is based on the principle that the students will honor and respect the ideals on which this school is founded. “Idealism is not only still very much alive in our society, but it is a necessary priority. It is our only future; for, without hope, where would our future lie?” SCOTT BRITTAIN — Sophomore Class President . -A '