1952 Magnet Yearbook

JAR\'I S COLU:til An:
., 0 ­
The Road of Life
Th e roads of lift' lit, open. Some lead upward s . some st re tch stra Isht
and clear into th t' distance, so me s ink deeper and dl,t'pl'r. It is like nnv
o rdi na ry network of road s. but fo r one a bse nt ch a racteristi cs: no hel pfu l
5iR'1I info rms the traveller of the r-ight di rection . of w ha t th e next be nt!
may bring .
Th eil' convict ions a nd pri nci ples a re the direct ions of th ose who
traw l the roads of life successfully. T hese are his g uides and th ev cont rol
his decisions. It is lm peratl ve. th erefore, th at they Iw well-founded. solid,
unshakeable.
To buil d such convictions and make t hem t r ue we mus t IJp l'I UI'e of
severa l a bsolute funda me nt a ls, Th e mos t important function of OUl' educuti
on is to inspire th ese bas k concepts in us , and make them th e verv a xioms
of our lives .
Two wor ld wars sa w the death of ma n,\' cberi s hed ho pes a nd ideals.
.:\Ia ny ot he r .... a re .... lowly sinking into dogma. In this incn'asinJ,rI,\' cvn ica l
world, ma ny For-me r vir tue.... fa ll in to disrepute with ea ch generation : new
ideals are born. Ce nt ur ies-old standa rds. fo r agel' regarded unsha keable
and a bso lute, are becoming rela t ive and open to discussi on . T hi com ing
yo unger generation il' eve n un certai n of it .... god. Some of th e mo t intellizent
boys in Jarvis call th emselves a gnostic..... Ot he rs declare thei r Reason
t heir god . Today, onl v th e unthinking can stamp on e t hing as unquestlonably
a ood a nd another as j ust as bad.
Yet, goodness and r ight must be a bsolu te and unch a ng ea ble. and rema
in RO rega rdless of world changes. They a re the sa me now as at the verv
moment of Creation. But they haw dimmed and been made obscure by a
my riad of lesser loya lt ies. dogmat ic j ustices. a nd t he witty sa yinR'1' of a
t ho usa nd philosopher s.
Who knows wh at th e fa ce of ou r times will be like in t he histo ry books
of tomorrow? Caesar. to my mind. was a killer of millions for his own
ruthless ends, a power-drunk dicta tor wh o o rganized a privat e a rmy. and
t rained it fo r the violen t over throw of a more or less democratic. though
cor r upt . govemmeut. Caesar's cause was far less noble than that of Gallic
tr ibes dying in d roves for their freedom . under the professi onal swords of
Caesarian so ldiery. Yet history has placed the hero's laurel wreath on
Caesar's head, and made th e cause of Ga ul a ppea r j usrly defeated .
It is a gargant uan task to find axioms of truth in this all-consuming
sea of confusion, and to convince ou rselves (n/llplf'tf'lll of th ei r validity.
It is a deeply pe rsonal matter. ::\'0 one can really convince you of anvthinz .
Yo u can be shown what ot hers believe right. but yo u must ch oose and
tecide yourself.
One of the chief characteristics of great men . often over looked. is that
ea ch lived by a code of principle... to which he clung with iron determination
a nd fo r wh ich he was willing to pe rish.
Ha ving made you r dec! .... ion. abide by it. Th en you will heliew in yourself.
a nd be ready for a nyt hi ng t he f utu re may held in store. And no
longer will yo u he, in the word... of wise Dr. H. K_ Sandwell, "thoroug hly
mixed up ".
)1. T.