Viscount Bennett Junior High School - Terminal Yearbook (Calgary, Alberta Canada)

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THE TERMINAL . Page 101 a penny, a piece of string? Will you be a bobby-pin, rocket fuel, gum the dirt on a fly’s wing? Will the world be yours, or is the world ever yours? You were a million things, so no wonder you watch, eyes transfixed, the ant crawl across the sidewalk, the eagle soar into the pale blue, the trout glide swiftly through the water. Wo wonder you stare at bird, beast, insect and fish. You were once all of these in time’s endless passage, so you acknowledge any existence, despite its feebleness or complcxityj you stop and watch because you know someone once stopped to observe you, to recognize you, somewhere deep in the past before automobiles, movies — before telephones, airplanes, and before supermarkets. Some¬ one once stopped to watch you, but it was so long ago. Since the beginning, you have always observed and something has always been there to watch you in return. I swear this to be true and if it is not true then I am not the bead of sweat on your forehead, nor do you exist, nor does the earth and all that inclines to rest upon it. Ron Huck, 11-30 SECOND PRIZE (Tied) TRIVIALITIES We’re spoiled ' . You’re spoiled, the whole world is spoiled, including myself. We get whatever ouf hungry hearts (and mouths, as well) desire. Our parents, leaders and teachers cater to our every whim and want. Our houses are brimming with utterly useless contrivances such as doors, walls and little sisters. Look around you, at home, at school, what do you see? TRIVIALITIES, of coursel Utter nuisances such as the aforementioned, actually hinder us and Miserablize our lives. How many times have you collided with a door (truthfully nowj none of the black-eye excuses )? If there were no such monstrosities, entrances between rooms would be unobstructed, there would be no scratches on walls (another group of extraneous objects), thus eliminating the otherwise necessary repainting. Of what earthly good is a wall? Inten¬ tionally jutting out into most corridors, walls seem to have an almost uncanny ability to be in the right place (direct¬ ly in front of you) at the wrong time. Without walls, we would need no expensive paintings to cover the conspicuous cracks and holes, ' ' we would not have to heat many separate rooms, but one large one with a central heater. You see. I’ve saved you money already. Sisters, touch sub¬ jects at the best of times, were created in my opinion, to balance the world; most other things ar e- pleasant and serve some purpose, but sisters, on the other hand, are just that - on the other hand. Glimpsing at the topic of trivialities from another angle, we find that today, people (mainly: the species(?) known as woman ) get worked up and flustered over the most trifling bits of nonsense. Meeting an acquaintance on the street, you comment on her new coat. That person, after considering the ’remark, wanders aimlessly off, wondering whether it was a comment or a subtle insult. This is typical of the way

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THE TERMINAL Page 100 ESSAYS FIRST PRIZI REINCARNATION You look out, for the first time, at n. the whitecapped waves struggling free of y 1 the ocean, and you think for a split - s second that you have witnessed this be- v U fore. You look down from a mountain top j -— |! j for the first time in your life and you j [j | feel you have done this before. You J I silently absorb the cold brilliance of j a star-lit night and you forget who you X are. You begin to wonder what you | were. . . lj ! You were the drop of moisture on a I leaf, a plummeting raindrop, a perfectly- . w--[ ' moulded snowflake. You were a minute ■ , s t- - 5 v splotch of moisture in the dirt. V You were the tall, marvellous oak, j (y. Vr the petite exquisite bloom, a tiny forget- me-not in the sunlit meadow. You were the -41 2 - ancient fern, the wayward weed in the swamp. You were most things without life, a worthless clump of clay, a precious gem, a fine sword of steel. You were gunpowder, poison on a dart, the feather on an arrow -- evil forces. You were a harmless smooth pebble in someone’s palm. You were earth, air, fire and water and more still. You were most things animate, a -----—-prehistoric monster, a mammal. You were deer, bison, elephant you were lion, puma, cheetah and you were fox, hare ,chipmunk, . s v possum and beaver. You were the hunter y and sometimes the hunted. J n In your supreme moments you were man. ! You were the peddlar, the butcher, the V „athlete, the invalid, the criminal, the j ' genius, the ignorant peasant. You were r -r ' the baker and the candlestick maker. You ' •—x were a prince, a duke, a count, a court ' jester, a merlin, a witch doctor. You 4 [ T- were president, vice-president, secretary, Y T Nr—treasurer and janitor. You were all types) I | jT j - of man; the strong, the weak — the shorty I j j I I the tall — the fat, the thin. I l ' ll i And what will be in your endless ) II 1 j I tomorrow? A kernel of popcorn, a gum 11 j i j j wrapper, a paper clip, ink, a shoelace, I j j j j 1 an eraser, the lead of a pencil? Will you) I 1 j j i be a broken sliver of glass, a little —J—1—- —l -i-i—1—I—!——i-- boy’s marble, lipstick, a two-cent stamp, j

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j THE TERMINAL ....Page.102. people take nonsensical, meaningless remarks to heart. A famous American indulgence also takes root in this fact; this is gossip, one part of our way of life, without which they (who else but girls and women?) could not possibly subsist. In concluding, possibly I should define the word triviality in simple language. If you call something trivial, in my opinion you floccinaucinihilipilifi- cate it. Elliot Gelfand, 11-29 | SECOND PRIZE (Tied) TODAY ' S TEENAGER . Today ' s teenager is to his friends, priceless; to psychiatrists, the tenth wonder of the world; to his parents, independence itself; to teachers, the worst monstrosity since the atom bomb; and to the opposite sex, super with a capital S . Since grandfather ' s day the status of teenagers has changed quite severely. They are the general topic of parents ' conversations, teachers ' conferences, and openhouse discussions. It would be difficult to define the average teenage girl adolescent, but for the most, part, she ate discipline, school, i crawly insects, ccw- boredom. She thrives faded blues, earrings,- Brando, lipstick, murders, of course, boys . Until the age of she is a sweet , we 11- doesn ' t know boys exist homework faithfully, of life gradually dis- phase of life first be- j when you, her mother, ter her room. When asked iently explains that it main and contains all of her valuables are, she does not explain. But one day you feel it is your duty to enter her room on a cleaning spree. Your first reaction is one of shocked silence. The dainty pink bureau cover has been replaced by a drooping red flannel cover with blue patches. (This you soon discover is a new fad.) The walls are not visible be¬ cause of the pictures, most of which are those of males. The bed is unmade. From the look of it you presume that it has not been made for several days. On the floor I are strewn a pair of yellow pcdal-pushers, two sweaters, a True Romance , a photo j album, a baseball cap, her brother ' s plaid shirt, and a few other valuables . This I change is too much. You leave the room, but decide to ignore the matter. The next | week you get her a record player for her birthday. Later you wonder what ever I persuaded you to do such a thing. She buys records endlessly, but not ones that produce musical sounds. You don ' t know exactly what they produce. On and on they j drone into the wee small hours of the morning. The dog leaves home, the neighbours start complaining, and you buy yourself a pair of good quality ear-plugs. One day you find she has a boyfriend. Now you say to yourself, This will surely make her dress and act like a lady. But, Oh, how wrong you arel Since the current fad is to dress like your boyfriend, she wears blue jeans about three sizes too small, a leather jacket, moccasins, and to top it all off, gets her hair haggled | off, and the two of then tear off on a motorcycle leaving you choking in a cloud of j dust. j -V simply cannot toler- boys with short hair, boy heroes, and on independence, moccasins, Karlon private phones, and, twelve or thirteen mannered child who and who does her However, this stage appears, and the next comes noticeable are forbidden to en- why, daughter pat- is her private do- her valuables. What