Oakland Technical High School - Talisman Yearbook (Oakland, CA)

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And so a door has opened wide And s+ands flung back . . . DECEMBER ... IQ!!

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MEMORY SKETCHES HROUGH graying sfreaks of wind-curved rain, sfern and aloof fo fhe assaulf of fhe sform, fen shallow, widely-builf sfairs lead fo fhe heavy doors of Technical. Scamper- ing raindrops, nof unlike faf, squirming gob- lins, splash and slide ioyously fo form widen- ing pools on fhe walk. Sfray sfudenfs, garbed in galoshes and raincoafs, and wifh umbrellas fhaf fighf fo hold fheir own againsf fhe sform, are swepf up fhe broad walk, like crisp aufumn leaves, frisked abouf by fhe wind. The lawns are flaffened, fhe corners flooded over by muddy wafer, and fhe firs af eifher end are myriads of finy cold raindrops, blown care- lessly againsf fhe boughs, shaking and slip- ping wifh each new downpour . . . K K D D Wildly cheering roofers below fhe brighf Technical banner, fhroafs fhrobbing, faces glowing: fauf players, shiff fo fhe righf, fhe ball snapped, fhen fhe final glory of a fouch- down: an iniured player, face wrenched wifh pain, roofers shoufing ouf his name: fhe band, insfrumenfs gleaming in fhe sun, brown uniforms dark againsf whife middies and shirfs-fhe fhrill of a feam pushing on fo vicfory . . . K K D D Walking from one end of Tech's hallways fo fhe ofher, one hears fhe sfaccafo click of fypewrifer keys, voices from hisfory and mafhemafic classes, fhe quief hum peculiar fo fhe library, fhe business-like underfone of fhe offices, fhe noisy iumble of newspaper sounds from fhe Scribe headquarfers, fhe blending of fones descending from fhe glee rooms, all mingled fogefher. One's fooffalls on fhe rubbery floors echo up and down fhe empfy corridors, fhaf are soon fo be fhronged wifh pushing, surging sfudenfs, shoufs of hello fo friends, faces responding in quick smiles . . . Flashing sabres, shining buffons: barked commands, companies wifh sfraighf lines passing in review: fhe slap of well-polished slings againsf glossy rifles: low voices of fhe officers asking quesfions and eager voices of cadefs answering: cadefs under fhe direcfions of non-coms marching back fo fhe armory: fhe crash of bolfs as fhe companies inspecf arms: fhe command Dismissed, and fhe cheers of cadefs relieved of fhe pressure of being af affenfion: fhe parade is over . . . K K D D Two sfone benches, invifing and cool under shade frees: fhe parade ground, marching columns, even, khaki: flowering peach frees, blazes of clusfered blossoms: powdery yellow acacia, peppery in odor: fhe sfeady clamor of machines in fhe shops: carefully planfed shrubberies: lacy paffern laid on fhe marble lobby floor by sun and ironed-crossed doors -all are parf of fhe campus we will never forgef . . . SENIOR MEMORIES

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FROM A SENIOR? DIARY T'S RATHER nice fo be young. Life is suddenly very imporfanf and very fhrill- ing. Af fhe Senior Banquef if occurred fo me fhaf I really am leaving school, and all ifs cloisfered securify, and I felf awfully aged and decrepif, and wepf loudly for my van- ishing youfh and for all fhe fhings fhaf musf be puf aside. Funny, fhis business of growing up-an endless process of puffing foys on fhe shelf, fo gafher dusf fhere and be forgoffen. We're consfanfly leaving parf of ourselves behind fo make room for somefhing new. Maybe 'l'haf's fhe only way fhaf fime really fouches us. Maybe +haf's whaf growing old is. Some people grow old beaufifully, because fhey're careful whaf fhey leave behind, and whaf fhings fhey make room for. The ofher day I looked info fhe mirror and was appalled fo see how old I was. Why, I'm nof a kid any more! I have fo shave every ofher day now. lThis broughf a glow of manful pride.l Preffy soon l'll be raising a family and coming home from fhe office wifh a newspaper sficking ouf of my overcoaf pockef, because almosf anyfhing can happen when you have fo shave every ofheruday -, and for a liffle cherished fime, looking af fhe Me in fhe mirror, fhe ofher Me felf incredibly old and wise and wanfed fo go abouf pafernally paffing fhe heads of liffle girls. Then in an illuminafing flash, fhe whole fhing was very, very funny, and an irrepressible somefhing uncoiled like a spring inside me, and I laughed. I laughed af fhe poor, solemn pompousness of my own youfh and af fhe reflecfion of myself laugh- ing back af me, and we had a glorious, gay old fime, fhaf ofher Me and I. Sfrangely, from ouf of fhe dusf of briefly forgoffen fhings, I recapfured a picfure of anofher Me, a Me fhaf was so much surer, wiser, older fhan I am now, having reached fhe franscendenf cynicism which only a boy of fiffeen can affain. He was paddling a canoe, fhis earlier Me, and seeking fo im- press fhe girl in fhe bow wifh all fhe wisdom and excellence of his years. He was clever and gay, fhis fellow, and sure and very biffer. He had lived and suffered and grown fired, and now he was very glib, and rafher bored wifh fhe whole dreary business. In fhe middle of a mosf sagacious ufferance, his voice, which had iusf reached fhe uncerfain sfafe, wenf sailing up fo a shrill soprano, wavered, and slid down shakily fo a rolling bass. If was a fragic momenf. And I wondered how many more fimes in my life l'd look info fhe mirror and laugh. SENIOR MEMORIES