OCR Text |
Show LOOKING A YEAR AHEAD What will the year 1917 mean to this community, to this people? What will 'be your personal attitude atti-tude toward the making of a better, place, a more prosperous community, a more open hearted people? The efforts of the individual citizen citi-zen may accomplish something. The cooperation of a collective people will produce notable results. Collective cooperation is only possible pos-sible where confidence and good will exist, and where there is a determination determin-ation to utilize this combination to the ultimate good of all. The man who holds a grouch against his neighbor can not successfully suc-cessfully pull in harness with that neighbor so long as that grouch exists. ex-ists. Lose the grouch. The man who disparages and undermines un-dermines the reputation of another can not expect the community in general gen-eral to think well of the assassinator of character. Speak gently and use the -soft pedal. The man who says "go ahead" can not expect to keep pace with the hustler who says "come on." Step lively and get there. And one man who says "I Will" is worth a hundred of those who say "I Can't." This is the time of year when the hopperof time is filled with new resolutions. reso-lutions. But it is more profitable to act than to resolute. Let us make this a year of action, of deeds, and of results. Let us make this more than a collection col-lection of individuals. Let us make it a community of people with one fim, one ambition, and one great purpose in life, and let us make that purpose the good of man and womankind woman-kind in general and of this community commun-ity in particular. If we work collectively and earnestly earn-estly and energetically we will achieve success, but if we labor individually in-dividually we will accomplish but little. lit-tle. The, road of life is long, and stormy, and barriers bar our way. But many hands make light work of ihe heaviest burdens, and collective might may roll the heaviest barrier. away. We may each pursue our own chosen chos-en vocations, and yet all labor in the common cause of a better and more prosperous town and countryside. Two horses pulling in one direction will get the load there. But when one pulls and the other balks the load stands still. Will 1917 find us a community of loyal pullers, or a divided aggregation aggrega-tion of pullers and balkers who accomplish ac-complish nothing but to stand still? Nineteen seventeen will tell the story, and you will put the words in the mouth of the teller. What are those words going to be? Will they be loyalty, cohesion, aggressiveness, ag-gressiveness, success? Or will tiny te disloyalty, suspicion, disintegration, disintegra-tion, disaster? A year of promise is ahead, but promise never makes good unaided and alone. We must each grasp the' opportun. ities with which nature has pirvide-d t,s, and turn those opportunities to individual and collective weal. To do otherwise will be to stand still while others march on to victory vic-tory and to success. Shall we stand, or shall we march? You tell. |