1933 Cedrus Yearbook

untruthful act or word will leave its imprint and have its influence on our character. We are given our minds; we make our characters. The powers necessary to make characterare comparable to a handful of seeds. Plant the seeds and tend them well, and they will make a good orchard. Cultivate the powers and harmonize them well, and they will make a noble character. God gives the mind; man makes the character. The mind is the garden; the character the fruit. A subtle thing is character; a constant work is its formation. A good character is a precious thing, above rubies, crowns, gold or king- doms,and the work of making it is the noblest labor on earth. One great factor in determinging character is what one really is. Then when one finds out what he is, he must catch a vision of what he might become and improve himself by his thoughts and actions, because thoughts make habits and habits make character. Habits are but assembled bundles of settled ways of doing things, and we are merely the reflections of our habits. Habit can be man's best friend or his worst enemy; it can exalt him to the highest pinnacle of virtue, honor and happiness or sink him to the lowest depths of vice, shame and misery. Metastasio entertained so strong an opinion as to the power of repetition in act and thought,that he said,"All is habit in mankind, even virtue itself." We must cultivate good habits; for it follows that men of fine character are men of fine habits. Since thoughts make habits, one's thoughts should be pure and worthwhile. One should think clearly and try to control his thoughts. Evil thoughts are dangerous enemies and should be repulsed at the threshold of one's mind. All great men are thinkers; other- wise they would nothave attained greatness. They form new ideas and opinions. They do not accept the thoughts of others, but organize their own and then become famous by putting these thoughts into action. The value of character is the standard of human progress. The individual, the com- munity, the nation proclaims its standing, its advancement,its true wealth and glory by its reliance on character. That man or nation who lightly esteems character, is low, grovel- ing, and barbarous. Wherever the formation of character is a secondary consideration, sensualism and crime prevail. He who tries to discard his proper character to assume what does not belong to him is usually ignorant of both the character he leaves and the charac- ter he assumes. Theodore Roosevelt's strong statement of many years ago, becomes a burning truth today, "Character is, in the long run, the decisive factor in the life of in- dividuals and nations alike." Character creates confidence in all men regardless of station of life. It was said of the first Emperor Alexander of Russia that his personal character was equivalent to a constitution. Franklin attributed his success in public life not to his talents or powers of speaking, for these were but moderate, but to his known integrity of character. Every true and noble character is sin- cere. He is free from hypocrisy and pretense. There is no folly in the world because out- wardly he pretends to be a good character, ALFORD MEMORIAL GYMNASIUM Page Forty