Pickering College - Voyageur Yearbook (Newmarket, Ontario Canada)

Page 12 text:

C5 'Zi' nllluf , g , rr if 111 is - I ,va ..,A .,. 1 .. q ,. f ,. Q fs' YA? STAFF Back Row: A.H. Jewell, B.N. Forhan,E.M.Veale,H.M. Beer, D.J. Menard, J.R. Leach. Middle Row: R.M. Manion, K.G. McLaren, J. Leightell, R.M. Mucy, B. Racicot. Front Row: J.D. Purdy, J.D. Jefferson, S.K.Fraser,M. Fish, W.H. Jackman. CConUd honipagesevenj It is said that primitive man's first step towards civilization came when the tribe sat down in a circle and allowed one man to speak at one time. Freedom to learn in a classroom means therefore a respect for order, which means in turn a respect for the rights of others to learn under proper conditions. The same thoughts may be turned to other aspects of our life together. You have the right to a quiet environment for evening study, you have the right to expect that the rules of a game are observed, you have the right to the peace and calm of your own room without disturbance, you have the right to the ownership of your own personal possessions, you have the right to expect that a fellow student will enhance the name of your school and not degrade it. Those who do not respect these rights ofyoursand minedestroy ourfreedom and eventually their own. When they learn to understand freedom, they will realize that it means, far from just having their own way, liberty within the law and that law means a respect for the rights of others. In other words, freedom and responsibility are two sides of the same coin, indispensable to one another, forever bound together, if one is destroyed, both are destroyed. But, remember, if you can understand this problem through love of freedom rather than through fear of law, you will be able to hold your head high as a free man. Then you will truly walk at liberty. Harry M . Beer. Eight

Page 11 text:

A Personal Word To The S tudenls Teach me, 0 lord, the way of thy statutesg AndI shall keep it unto the end. Give me understanding, and I shall keep thy law,' Yea, Ishall observe it with my whole heart. Make me to go in the path of thy commandmentsg For therein do I delight. Incline my heart unto thy testimonies,- Andnot to covetousness. Turn away mine eyes from beholding vanity, And quicken me in thy ways. Confirm thy word unto thy servant. Let thy mercies also come unto me, 0 Lord. Even thy salvation, according to thy word. And take not the word of truth utterly out of my mouthg For I have hoped in thy judgments. So shall I observe thy law continualbf, For ever and ever. And I will walk at liberty. Psalm 119. Are we losing our right to walk at liberty? The events of these turbulent years: wars, riots, violence and assassinations must cause a young man like your- self to wonder what freedom really is and how it can be attained. It seems to us at Pickering that the Psalmist has the answer to these questions so essential to man's survival. His belief that freedom exists only under law is a difficult concept to learn and to teach. No doubt he means moral or spiritual law, for man's love of good for himself and his fellows makes moral and spiritual demands on him which must in turn be reflected in his legal statutes. The philosophy of our school, given to us by the Society of Friends, has always been based on the belief that adolescents know how to handle freedom or can learn how to handle it. Here we want to have confidence and trust in youth. There are times when youth abuses such trust, perhaps believing that freedom means the right to do anything one wants, to have one's own way, no matter what the cost. Some children grow up into adolescence and into adulthood with this same misunderstanding, slow to learn that our personal freedom ends where it infringes upon the freedom of another individual or harms the freedom of the group - whether it be family, friends, school or country. It is here that law and religion meet, our law commanding us to respect the rights of others and our faith making us realize that we should do unto others as we would that they do unto us. Now, the happiest groups, the most civilized communities,are those inspired by an understanding of law, rather than by fear of the law and its punishment. Such a community we want Pickering College to be. Here the wise and mature student does his best, not because he fears punishment or restriction of privilege, but because he wants the freedom and self-respect that come from doing his best. CCont'd on page eighty Seven

Page 13 text:

Student Editorial 'Our life at Pickering helps us develop a strong feeling of loyalty to our school. This is probably because our school is small and we get to know one another extremely well, sharing closely a common experience in classes, games, corridor life and in many student activities. Because this is done with a close relationship between students and masters, we begin to feel very much like a big family. The opportunity we have to get to know our teachers has considerable influence on us. Even when we do not agree with them, we remain conscious of the standards they hold out for us. For those of us who come to Pickering from large schools, it is this personal touch which awakens a very real desire in us to do our best. Gradually the regular evening study and the weekly gradings help us begin to see where we are heading academically. High goals are set for us by Pickering, goals which sometimes we ignore, but which deep in our hearts we know to be the right ones for us. This is true in our academic pursuits, but perhaps even more important it is true in our relations with those around us. Because we live at close quarters, we have an excellent chance of gaining an intimate understanding of human nature and, whether we like it or not, we are often obligated to place the best interests of the group before our personal wishes. Indeed, the emphasis our school puts on the need for service to others is the greatest lesson we can learn from our years on the Hilltop. The essence of Pickering's teaching is that we must be trained to the best of our ability so that we can then make a contribution to our own generation. Here at Pickering we have learned to'reverle the ideals and sacred things of the City . Let us take them with us and keep them with us in the years ahead. Nine