Richmond Hill High School - Archway / Dome Yearbook (Richmond Hill, NY)

Page 22 text:

Q11 Sending Christmas Cards By LYDIA ZINKE HO invented Christmas cards anyway? It is extremely for- tunate for that individual that his name is shrouded in the curtain of oblivion. More misunderstandings, sharp words, and broken friendships have resulted from forgotten or delayed Christmas cards than is generally conceded. Every year, about the beginning of December, l en- deavor to remind myself not to forget to follow that time- honored custom of sending cards to all my friends, near and far old and young. l start investigation in all the stores to see which one offers the most cards for the least money and end up by buying a dollar box containing fifty cards beautifully illustrated and each bearing a different greeting . My sister, after years of bitter experience, has come to the conclusion that it saves time, effort, and nerves Cnot moneyj to have her cards printed with her name, but l firmly adhere to my principle of that little personal touch -l mean the use of pen and inlc. Exactly two days before Christmas, l get out my pen and the box of cards and with the air of do or die in the attempt l try not to hear the whispering in the next room and not to thinlc of all the unbought Christmas presents but instead to bring my thoughts down to the worlc at hand. l have a sense of pride as l remember my forethought in preparing last year a list of the names and addresses of those who sent me cards. I begin to wonder uneasily where in the world l put my list. After delving into drawers for half an hour without success, upsetting the house in general and the family in particular, l sheepishly admit that l must have thrown it away the last time l cleaned my drawer, not realizing the stupendous value it would represent in a few short months-in economics it is called the creation of time utility by storage Calthough it shouldn't be stored so well that it can- not be found againl. l become resigned to the awful necessity of testing my memory in an effort to remember everyone that sent a card. The first one l thinlc of lives in Florida. l-lorrorsl With only two days till Christmas l figure out that a card talces fully four days to reach Ruby in Florida and the heavy holiday mail would increase the time by another twenty-four hours. l also thinlc of Gene in Wisconsin and Bernie in South Carolina. Qh, why didn't l heed the warning, Mail your Christmas cards early! l wonder whether or not to send the cards but remembering the maxim, Better late than never, l tal4e heart once more and the verdict is favorable. With renewed courage l begin the search for an address bool4 which l used to lceep in the carefree days of my youth before l entered high school and before time was money. This time l emerge triumphantly from the depths of the last drawer with the spoils clutched tightly in my upraised hand and a jubilant expression on my face. THE SENIOR DOME Page'l8

Page 21 text:

our entries, the best record being made in the star class, where we managed to ralce together enough points for a fifth place. Unquestionably the finest sailing was done by Dr. Bischoff of Germany, who in his star boat toolc five firsts, one second and one fourth place out of a total of seven races. To see him handle his boat in a close finish was enough to talse one's breath away. Kiel is essentially a naval city-I couIdn't imagine it without its gray, square-sterned warships, its square-rigged school ship and its neat, blue- jaclceted sailors. The British cruiser Neptune and I3oIand's training ship were visiting at the time of the games, and Iater the Italian cruiser Gorizia arrived. Last summer it had seemed amusing to me that people loved so much to promenade in the Kurparlcs of the nation's spas, but this is as nothing to the thousands of Kielfs inhabitants who turned out each evening to crowd along the I-Iindenburg Ufer, the long broad waterfront promenade, where they listened to the naval band or broadcasts of the Qlympic Games in Berlin. Some nights there was a special attraction of searchlight practice by the ships in the harbor, which was joined in by the visiting cruisers. It was on this promenade that the closing ceremonies for the sailing races were held. Sailors, S. A. men, and youths from labor camps marched along carrying torches, the flags of the victorious nations were hoisted as their national anthems were played, and hundreds of Itayalcs with Japanese lanterns paddled about near the shore. Suddenly on all the warships in the harbor, torch flames appeared in rows around the declts, which at a rocket signal were all tossed into the sea, while searchlights shone up into the air. I Iowever, the poor Italians, who evidently had difficulty in under- standing the arrangement, remained holding their torches until they either beat them out against the sides of the ship or finally also threw them into the bay. At another roclcet signal the searchlights went out, there was a flourish of trumpets, and the Qlympic fire on the mast of the Kogge flicltered and died out. The Qlympic sailing races of 'I936 were at an end. I I I : 5 ' Li..

Page 23 text:

I carefully write a friendly note on the back of the card with the reflec- tion that Ruby will be so glad to hear from me that she will overlook the fact that the card arrived exactly two days after Christmas. I do the same to the others, address the envelopes in my best handwriting, put the cards in and pile them neatly up with a sense of achievement. The next friend is an extremely peculiar case. It seems that Lillian and I never lcnow whether or not to send cards to each other. Two years ago, I felt guilty when I received a card from her after I had neglected to send one. Last year, I was careful to send one to Lillian but didn't receive one from her. Now if I send a card this year and Lillian falls down on the job, she will feel uncomfortable. On the other hand, if she sends a card and doesn't receive any, she may be offended. After careful consideration of this weighty matter, I decide to send the card. After I place the fourth card on the pile, I looI4 at the cloclt and discover that it has talcen me one hour, fifteen minutes, and eighteen seconds to malce a start. This will never do. I hurriedly scrawl my name on all the rest of the cards without bothering to write a greeting and then address the envelopes. Too late do I find that some addresses are written with the envelope upside down. I am comforted by the idea that it is an original way to address envelopes anyway. My sister comes into the room and with her eagle eye discovers that about five of the addresses have been changed. patiently I find out the new ones, some from the telephone boolc, some from my obliging sister's address booI4. By the time I notice the need of stamps, the post office is closed and re- signing myself to the inevitable, decide to mail them the next day. After piling the cards up neatly, I return from the battlefield, with the air of a conqueror, for some well-earned rest-only to spend a sleepless night wondering whom I cut off without a card from me. ODE TO A GARDEN HOSE .... The water fell as tiny drops of gold, When flung in wide high arcs of breeze-blown spray, And seemed to splash among the friendly plants With happy, hearty music, stirring leaves. They splashed and carolled gayly there. The blooms Of perfect flowers caught engaging elves That rode their silver chariots, greeting grass, All blossoms, earth, if clothed in dull drab brown Or bright, or brilliant colors, living lakes Reflecting heaven's heights, unfathomed depths, Sun's rays and sudden shadows cast by clouds That sweep the summer slay serene. Marguerite Baumann Ti-IE SENIOR DOME Page '19 cj -FF