North View High School - Southside Echoes Yearbook (North View, VA)

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SOUTHS IDE ECHOES 39 when the one who is not a Christian would never stop to think about it. We need always be up and doing something for the ad- vancement of some good cause. “To reach the port of heaven, we must sail sometimes with the wind, and sometimes against it, but we must sail and not drift nor lie at anchor.” We have some men and women in our community who have made it their life’s aim to take no backward steps. They have always taken an active part in all Christian work, and are always ready to do a deed of kindness. They have always tried to help those around them to obtain better and higher things. Take, for example, Lawrence and Columbus. After Lawrence was mortally wounded, as he was borne below, he exclaimed : “Don’t give up the ship.” Columbus’s greatest desire was to discover the new country, or a passage to India. He took no backward steps. He went to sea at the age of fourteen years. He was continually engaged in voyages. He had many diffi- culties in setting out, but by the aid of Queen Isabella he finally obtained three vessels and ninety men. He sailed from Palos August 3rd, 1492. The weeks passed so drearily by, that the sailors became very much discouraged and wanted to turn back, but Columbus said, “No steps backwards,” so they still pressed on. After many weeks of hardships and discourage- ment, Columbus began to notice green branches floating about on the water, and birds flying about in the air. At two o’clock in the morning of October nth a shout from the Pinta an- nounced the discovery of land. They were all very glad to think they had resisted all temptations to give up, and had gained great success. We can almost see Columbus now as he stood on the deck with his pale face turned toward the west, and longing for the sight of land. Joaquin Miller has written a beautiful poem concerning this part of the admiral’s life. He says in part :

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38 SOUTHS IDE ECHOES We must go ever onward. The world has no place for the sluggard, and no place for the one who will take a backward step, or even for the one who will be contented to stand still. We rise to higher things by things that are beneath our feet. We are lifted up by difficulties which we successfully over- come. Difficulties may seem to thwart us, but they give us great power to resist and push on. An old motto says, “Ad astra per aspera,” — “To the stars through difficulties.” On- ward and upward should be our aim without even looking back. In our daily life the little things count. A deed of kind- ness, however small it may be, may help some poor weary traveler. Even a few kind words may cheer some aching heart. A cup of cool water to the thirsty, a crumb of bread to the perishing, and a penny to the poor ! Let us always carry a bright sunny smile on our face, and have a kind word to greet our friends. W e must take time to be pleasant. The small courtesies which we often omit because they are small, will some day look larger to us than the wealth which we covet, or the fame for which we struggle. The poet says : “Heaven is not gained at a single bound, But we build a ladder by which we rise, From the lowly earth, to the vaulted skies And mount to it’s summit round by round.” Thus the greatest success is achieved. Be successful. The world always admires success, which means advance- ment and no step backward. Everyone admires the successful man. Why? Because he is ever advancing. We achieve success in various ways. But we must first know how to meet every circumstance of life without taking any backward steps. Let us consider the Christian life. A Christian has many temptations. They have more, it seems, than one who is not a Christian, for the Christian tries to resist many temptations,

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40 SOUTHSIDE ECHOES “Then pale and worn, he kept his deck, And peered through darkness. Ah, that night Of all dark nights ! And then a speck — A light! A light! A light! A light! It grew, a starlit flag unfurled ! It grew to be Time’s burst of dawn. He gained a world ; he gave that world It’s grandest lesson: On! sail on!” Thus may it be with our Alma Mater. The fondest hope of the class of 1908 is that it may go on widening its sphere and increasing in usefulness. We would, in the words of the poet, say to our high school and our schoolmates : “On ! sail on !” The path lies open before you. It may be steep and rugged in places, but keep your eye always fixed upon the goal of a well spent life. Take no backward steps nor even hesitate to look back. We have started in the right direction and the nearer we approach success, the brighter becomes our vision. Before us lies the city of our dreams. Let us, like “Christian,” in Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress,” cast aside the evils, doubts and hindrances which try to accompany us, and look only toward the time when our brightest dreams and as- pirations shall be satisfied. In this way we shall secure the most enduring peace of mind and most lasting happiness. Helen Smithson Russell, ’08.