Princeton University - Nassau Herald Yearbook (Princeton, NJ)

Page 15 text:

ZTIE Missa U HERALD. A 13. not less had that character in silence and obscurity pursued its constant way until it broke into the light. v In the world to-day there is no life so low, no calling so high, but needs a leading motive to give it direction and constancy. How we need it in all departments: some motive to give life- direction, some sovereign aim to give it constancy. One's heart aches to look upon the lives of men and women and see how pur- poseless, oftentimes worse than purposeless, they are. Rudder-- less ships, which bear precious freight, but only drift with the current, or iride restlessly t around the narrow limits of the whirlpool. A i What wreck isso mournful as the wreck ofa life equipped for all noble being and doing, but useless and stranded, because no- purpose stood constant at thenwheel to give it direction ? And life must have ,a central object, a definite aim, to give it stability and might and meaning. ' ' v a Like 'the mighty fly-wheel of an engine, is a definite aim in ai man's life. It gives to life balance, symmetry and momentum. It gathers up into. one effort the wasted and unproductive forces, and there is immense power in energy concentrated. As in busi- ness it is the specialist, so in life it is often all the men,of one idea that to-day succeed. We need not only the power to achieve, but the will to do. Human life offers numerous avenues of growth and usefulness, holds out on every side splendid oppor- tunities, and men must voyage on rough seas sometimes to grasp and use them. But so many only rock idly in the harbor, while- life surges about them with its mighty tides and its tremendous issues. Oh, that some providential crisis might waken them to life's realities, and inspire them with zeal and .ardor in their work. , Q Blessed is that poverty which enkindles in the soul higher aspirations to make the most of life ! Blessed is that, whatsoever it be, that forces a man into inten- sity of action, though it may be distress or pain or seeming suf- fering! For he Who does the best his circumstances allow, Does well I Acts noblyl Angels could do no more I

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12 THE Nasal U HERALD. Ivy' QRATION. BY JoHN H. VANDYKE,iJR.i, Wrs. CLASSMATES:--Tl191'6 occur, from time to time in human life signal moments which become the landmarks of its, history- turning points in life, when it is Well to pause and take a retro- spect of the course that we have been pursuing, and learn the lesson there taught, which may serve to guide us in the future. To-day, which is a day wished for tl1ough With sorrow, longed for though with regret, has come, and soon from these pleasant walks of college life, and the close associations and friendships Which have bound us here, We Will enter the World as men! How can We then best advance our interests? How can we make our marks in life, finding, as we do, that 5' all the gates are 'thronged with suitors, all the markets overflow ? y Any .moment of success in life, however brilliant, passes away and leaves life to its ordinary current. The course of the stream is unaffected by the occasional eddy. The poet says: c 't Use gave me fame, 1 And fame increasing gave me use. 'After'all, use isthe great thing in life. Men are not floated to their enviable heights by the mere chance of favoring winds, nor do they With one-effortleap into their seats as the lithe horse- man may vault into his saddle, but they earn their place by the long toil of years 5 by the exertion of some large powers of intel- lect, or some to which a mastering purpose had given direction and aim. Achievement and character do 11ot Hash upon the world suddenly as a meteor in a dark sky, dazzling us by its swift and brilliant course. But through the spaces of night that meteor had Winged its rapid flight when no eye watched it lg and

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14 f THE Nassa U HERALD. Ourselves are our greatest treasure, and the life of man is laid in the loom of time to a pattern which he does not see, but God does. ' Tis ours to give form, polish and proportion to that im- mortal inheritance of ours. ' Oh, this wonderful life, so strange, so mysterious, so deep 5 making or wrecking manhood, and so forecasting eternity. And yet so many live without purpose or passion. y , We have no time to sport away the hours, All must be earnest in a world like ours. No matter, then, how humble your position in life, make the most of it, climbing, like the ivy, upward and onward to the light: where ltis rough and rugged, there fastening its tendrils only the closer. f i , i r Entering a new era in our lives, let us feel, as it doth feel+ . H-A tremor shoot ' ' Through all its fibres to the' root. Free the light and see the ray, f And strive to blossominto day. ' Make your life noble, for it is the heart, the inspiring motive, not the calling, that ennobles or degrades. In life let your primal -objects shine aloft like stars, knowing that the battle of life cannot be fought by proxy. Be' your own helpersli Be earnest! Be watchful! ' Be pure! ' ' ' i X