Summit School - Flame Yearbook (St Paul, MN)

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Briefly stated they are: Qlj Something mueh worse might have been invented. QQQ The pencil sharpener business would lail. I have tried fountain pens. but these, too, prove very unsatisl'ac'tory. They are extremely messy and spurt ink all over my hands and the paper. That is a point in lavor ol' pencil sharpeners. lor they at least are clean. unless they have just been oiled. Therelore l can suggest only one thing to those who must endure the same trouble as I, and tl1at is a rather recent invention, the automatic pencil. SALLY COOK F orm IV I L ILE MADELINE A llile Madeline pres du lac Superieur, Cest la, que se trouve mon bonheur Nous y nvons une maison tres grande, Dans laquelle il y a beaueoup de chambres. le nage et joue au tennis tout le temps, Dans notre foret je marche lentement, lc mlnnuse bien avec toutes mes amies, Qui demeurent dans la ville on elles gagnent leur vie. Dans cette ville il y a deux petites epieeries, Et aussi un garage et une bonne boulangerie, A tout moment quelque chose it faire, le fais des commissions pour mon pete et ina mere. MARY WELLS Glueos Form IV EVENING The shadows lengthen on the hills, The wind forgets to blow, And nearby in the still XfVe hear the shepherd's call. YVisps of clouds like sunlit sighs Drift aimless in the skies. And the night, caught by surprise, Sends forth the evening stars. The mist steals softly on the air Through each forest glen, and where On ll rise, a timid stag stops to gaze At the fierce sun's dying rays, Before it leaves the azure skies, To make way for the night. GER'1'RUDE PEET Form I I W

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ON SHARPENING PENCILS VERY evening before I sit down to begin my studies, I must run to a near- by sharpener and file down a handful of pencils. This task is an inevitable process and one which I detest wholerheartedly. How much easier life would be if I could sink into a comfortable chair and call, james, or john, or whatever the pencills name might be, quick, sharpen yourself! I'm in a hurry to do my studying. But this is a futile effort, for the pencil just lies there, stiff and composed, not even realizing what is expected of it. I suppose that I complain about the difficulty of sharpening pencils because of the awkward position in which I confront the sharpener. Most pencil sharp- eners are within easy reach, ready and willing to assist, but the only one I have access to is a devilish object in a remote corner of the kitchen. After carefully making a detour around a table and a waste basket in order to reach it, I thread the pencil through a maze of obstructions-a cake tin, matches, a coffeepot. All the while I am bumping one elbow on a stove nearby. Then the trick is to turn a corner around the toaster without breaking off the newly sharpened point. The greatest handicap is the sharpener's continual rasping noise, which irritates the mind so that it causes a momentary relapse. During this unhappy state of oblivion I am absolutely helpless and wander about in a daze. This happened the other night, when, already a bit unsteady from a previous en- counter, I entered the kitchen. Not knowing in which direction I traveled, I veered off my course and absent-mindedly held tl1e pencil under a water faucet while turning on the handle. If these losses of memory go on in many American homes, I expect them to be the future cause of a great deal of insanity. In due time the sharpening of pencils becomes a habit impossible to cureg for the more one sharpens them, the sharper they must be. The unfortunate victim of such a habit cannot use a dull point at all, but needs one needle-sharp in order to enjoy life. I am affected in this way myself, and I have watched this strange disease progress through its various stages. First, a happy state of bliss in which a pencil sharpener plays no part, then gradually the arising consciousness of such an object, and finally, the pathetic condition in which one scurries to and fro from paper to pencil sharpener in an endless cycle. I feel a deep and knowing pity for all those sorrowful people who, like me, have reached the final and incurable stage. There are many types of pencil sharpeners now on the market. The most popular type is the one which sharpens all sizes of pencils and honest styles of lead. This one leads a fine and honest life, playing no favorites and developing no prejudices in its daily routine. Then there is the kind which is particular and, when feeling stubborn, absolutely refuses to sharpen a certain type of lead. I have pondered a great deal over this subject and decided that the only pos- sibility of overcoming this temperamental species is to surprise it by using a lead which it will operate. Of course, some brands of sharpeners do not do their task at all, but there is no need to discuss these. For this emergency there is a simple device which may be used if one feels bold and daring. I refer to the knife. But it does not work if one wishes a sharp point, for it is a very primitive and caveman-like method, which at best leaves a blunt end, and at worst, a cut finger. I speak from experience on this subject, because once in a terrible battle against knife and pencil, I lost, and I still carry a scar. I might add that these knife wounds bleed excessively and are a great bother. They take between one and three weeks to heal. I have thus arrived at the conclusion that it might be better if there were no pencils at all, but on the other hand there are two arguments to consider. 24

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NIGHT SKATING E HAD barely started the two-mile journey across VVhite Bear Lake, and I already was proceeding with some difficulty. It wasn't that I couldn't skate but that the ice was partly covered with a hard, crusty snow which stopped my skates in the black night. This made the lake appear as a huge maze through which you had to weave carefully between banks of snow to find the patches of smooth, clear ice. As I went along, however, it became easier for me, and soon I was traveling at quite a speed. My brother and one cousin had already left my elder cousin and me behind and were soon lost in the blackness. I sudden- ly realized that I was growing very warm, so I took off my mittens and scarf and unbuttoned my coat. The wind blew my hair around my face and I felt a sense of freedom. I drew in deep breaths of the warm, refreshing night air. I looked back. Close behind me came my cousin. The shore towards which we were skating was dotted at intervals with red and white lights, some of them moving slowly along. On either side of me were the dark outlines of shore which cast a mood of impending gloom about the lake. The only sound which disturbed the tranquility was the occasional noise of cracking ice, which resounded like an echo through the frozen lake. I had to keep my mind, however, very much on my skating, both to avoid the three or four-inch cracks and to dodge the hindering snow. I now noticed that my cousin had been working his way slowly up to me and was slightly in the lead. He began to skate faster and faster and soon he, too, was swallowed up in the dark. Here I was, alone on a big lakeg and not being able to see or hear a thing, I had not the faintest notion of where to go. I became bewildered and confused and was frantically wondering what to do when my brother's whistle echoed clearly through the night. BECKY DRISCOLL F mm I V MON REGIME EAUCOUP de fois, je me suis dit, Aujourd ,hui je me mets au regime. Ie dois perdre vingt livresf' Ie reste toujours au regime au moins un jour, ou deux! Bientot je mange un morceau de gateau ou des bonbons. Apres cela, jioublie mon regime et je mange tout ce que je desire. A present je suis au regime. Ilespere toujours perdre vingt livres au plus, et quinze livres au minimum. le ne mangerai pas de gziteau, de desserts, de chocolat, et de glace. Quand j'aurai fini mon regime, personne ne me reconnaitra car je serai si maigre. Les gens qui me rendent furieuse sont ceux qui disent, 'AMais, pourquoi vous mettez- vous au regime? Vous nietes pas trop grossef, lls savent bien que je suis trop grosse. Ilaimerais mieux s'ils disaient, 'KOui, il faut que vous vous mettiez au regimef, Toute nourriture me tente. Ie devrais me dire, Mary Ella, desirez-vous etre maigre ou grosse?,' Depuis que je desire etre maigre, je ne mange pas de bonne nourriture. Quelquefois la tentation est trop grande et je mange et mange jusqula ce que mon estomac soit plein. Aux soirees la tentation est la plus grande. Quand je vois mes amies qui mangent de bons gouters, je ne peux pas resister, et j'oublie mon regime. Mais je ne suis pas triste parce que demain, la semaine prochaine, ou le mois prochain, je me mettrai de nouveau au regime. MARY ELLA CARPENTER Form IV 26