Trafalgar School - Echoes Yearbook (Montreal, Quebec Canada)

Page 15 text:

Because of tliis impossibility, one must learn somehow the way to use one ' s faculties. The majority never do this, and remain for their entire life with their eyes and ears shut tight and their minds a dark vacuum. A few open their eyes and ears, and hv what thev see and hear they learn to live, not only to exist in the manner of a fungus. The chief lessons which these ' live-wires learn are to be observant, and to put themselves in another person ' s place. In short, they learn to think for themselves. Tiiere are verv few people who are able to learn the art of tiiinking unassisted, because such a strain is against human nature. Those who can, the world calls geniuses, and the average person is decidedly not a genius. Therefore, most people must be given an easy opportunity to learn to think; for this purpose there are schools and universi- ties. Too often we think that these institutions were purposely designed to stuff book- learning into the minds of imwilling pupils. On the contrary, the aim of a school is to train us to use our minds through the study of books and other sources of knowledge, anil so by easy stages we accustom oursehes to the process of thinking. Trafalgar School has been pro iiling this mental exercise for sixty years now: exercise for girls ' minds which once were thought to be extremely shallow and trivial. Trafalgar has been working hard at this for sixty years — each of us has only to work at scliool for eleven years. e should be all the more thankfid, therefore, for a grand school which has worked so long and hard to gi e us preparation for life, and we should do our full share of work, so tliat wlieii people look at us later in life they will .say, ' She is really alive: she went to Trafalgar School. There must be some con- nection ! MAGAZINE STAFF Editor Nain ' cy Incus Sub-Editor Jean Sinnamon Secretary-Treasurer ........ SoNiA FoGT Art Editor Giana Lyman Sports Editor Diane Lillie House Representative Leticia Artola Honorary Adviser Miss MacGachen MAGAZINE COMMITTEE Form Senior YI. Nora Corley Form IVa. Anne Pattison Form Arts VI. Sylvia Skelly Form IVb. Heather Cumyn Form Science VI. Nancy Hltcheson Form IIIa. Patricia Wright Form Va. Jacqueline Beaudoin Form IIIb. Judy Westaway Form Vb. Joan Lucas Form Upper II Jan Torrance THE TRAFALGAR CUP The Trafalgar Cup, awarded to the most public-spirited of the Senior girls who at. the same time has maintained a high standard of conduct and has shown devotion to work, was awarded jointly last year to Helen Aver and Patricia Witherow. THE FORSYTH CUP The Forsyth Cup, aw arded to the Senior girl who has made the most of her oppor- tunities, showing herself friendly and helpful to all, was won last year by Elizabeth THE INTER-HOUSE SHIELD The Inter-House Shield, presented by Mrs. Wynne Robinson, was won last year by Ross House. ' [13]

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AN Editor, to all those fortunate beings not familiar with the species, is an extremely indolent creature. Naturally, he wears a green eyeshade as a mark of his trade, but it is of no practical value; he also owns a large desk, chiefly for the purpose of resting his feet on it. In all the illustrations we have seen, he is represented as per- petually reading a newspaper — supposedly engrossed in the social page or the comic strips. Alas! such is not the poor editor ' s lot. We beg you to try to realize what he (or she) must endure. Magazines come and go; people buy them and doubtless enjoy them thoroughly, but without the slightest notion of how there ever happen to be magazines. They have other more important things to think about, and consider it a fatuous idea that they should for once put themselves in the other fellow ' s place, or for one moment try to get a new slant on such matters. We concede that it is of little importance whether or not the public realizes how hard is the task of the editor. However, it is the general truth that any person, when a commonplace fact is presented to him, will exclaim, Why, that is so. I never thought of it! Perhaps it is one of the incorrigible faults of humanity that it is unobservant. A few years ago, a question was asked in the General Knowledge test at Trafalgar. It was, What colour is the school fence? and it can be said that fewer people knew that answer than the answer to any other question. By that we mean really knew. Many were able to guess because the fence is such a common colour. Certainly nobody had the excuse of not having seen the school fence. Perhaps, at this point, some readers may be racking their brains to find the answer to that question. Shame on you ! Go and look. We were given eyes to see with and ears to hear with, but too often we do not use them. Many things are regarded as unimportant by careless people who afterwards wish they had been more wide-awake. It is often said, If I had known what was going to happen . . . but unfortunately it is impossible to know the future. [12]

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DR. GEORGE H. DONALD Chairman of the Board of Governors Trafalgar School 1925-46 Dr. Donald ' s keen interest in the many sides of scliool life has been unfailing: he has been, at all tii:ies, a wise counsellor and a warm friend. Trafalgar Girls, both past and present, wish him continued health and happiness in his retirement. We hope that his visits to the school, in the future, will be frequent.