AN INTERVIEW WITH SANTA CLAUS

So you don't believe in Santa Claus!  Well, for a long time I was inclined to agree with all you non-believers and then one night something happened which changed my mind.

It all began one Christmas Eve.  We were all seated around the Xmas tree singing and watching the snowflakes gently falling against the windowpane.

Timmy, age 3, and Kathy, 5, had just finished hanging up their stockings in front of the fireplace and were now telling everyone good night.  Their eyes seemed to shine like stars in their excitement, and it took all their combined efforts to keep from jumping around.  Finally they went upstairs.

It was later in the evening when I first heard the singing or at least I thought I heard the strains of "Holy Night."  Mom and Dad had long ago gone to bed, and I had been sitting and thinking of the days when I had so looked forward to Christmas and Santa Claus.

At any rate, I went to the door expecting to see a group of carolers, but no one was in sight.  I started to go in again when I heard bells and a jolly old voice shouting, "on Donder, On Blitzen!"

Looking up into the sky, I saw a tiny sleigh drawn by eight tiny reindeer, and singing away at the top of his lungs was none other than St Nick.  Needless to say, I was more than astonished at this sight.

After all I didn't believe in Santa Claus!  As I stood there hardly aware of the fact that I had no coat on, the sleigh seemed to come nearer and nearer until it was right above our house.

I waved and to my surprise old St Nick waved back and then disappeared from sight. I hurried into the house hoping to see Santa Claus there filling up the stockings and in another way half hoping not to see him.  After all, it is a bit unnerving to see someone you insist is not real.

Before I had time to do much more thinking, there he was with one of the friendliest grins possible on his kind, old face.  He looked at me, his eyes twinkling then he said: "You look surprised, my dear!  Don't tell me that you don't believe in me either."

What could I do but tell him the truth and then he made the following speech which firmly convinced me of the fact that there is a Santa Claus!

"You, and the thousands of others like you, have insisted there is no Santa Claus.  How do you think the name of Santa Claus has lived for so many years unless there is truly one?  After all there is a Christmas spirit and to the thousands of children the world over I'm that "spirit" and to some few adults I represent the spirit.  Is it so terrible to believe in what is good and what gives so much happiness?  People always worry about material things such  money, honor, and social prestige when, in reality, they are of little or no value.  To me the love shining in a child's eye is worth more than all of the above three combined.  Beware, my dear, of those people who are so sure of themselves and what they believe!  Don't ever let anyone destroy your ideals!"

With the last warning he left.  The next morning I awoke with his words still ringing in my ears.  Downstairs, Timmy and Kathy were standing before the tree breathless.  I looked into their eyes and then knew what Santa Claus had meant.   Truly, there is a Christmas spirit, known to many, as "SANTA CLAUS!"

After the arrival of Tardy Thayer, in Japan, the Brownes were probably the next to come.   With Col. and Mrs. Browne are two very nice daughters-One a senior at YAHS and the other a junior about whom I am going to write the week.  This junior is the popular Carol Browne.

Carol, besides being very high on the honor roll is active on the school paper. She's in the Library Club.

She claims Missouri as he home state, and so my be classed as a "southerner". Luck Girl!  Carol has been in Japan for over a year and expects to leave next summer sometime.  We don't like to see her leave not even to think about it so I won't say another word about it.

Horseback riding, swimming, and ice-skating are just a few of the things she likes to do outside of school, and from all reports, she, Patsy, Mike, Ernie, and Jackie have some fun at the stables.          

With all these activities she still finds time to be a cashier at our wonderful teen-age club.

Well, to finish this article up properly, I must congratulate Carol for being such an all "round" girl and for being such a wonderful member of the junior class.

                       THANKS

The Staff of the Junior Journal desires to extend their thanks to the following people:  Mrs. Gray for our party.  Mrs. Larkin and Miss Hall for help in typing.   Tony Craver for some good advice.  We also would like to laud the following people:  Ginger Larkin and Carol Browne for those high marks,  Tardy Thayer for her wonderful drawing.  Although this is a new feature of our paper, it is one of the most important ones, as it is the only place where we can give credit where credit is due.   If we have forgotten anyone please inform us so we can remedy this situation.

                  THE STAFF

Mike Buckley ---- Editor in Chief

Margie Ratterman ------ Asst Editor

Ginger Larkin ---- Society Editor

Patsy Fuller ---Asst Society Editor

Tardy Thayer ---  Art Editor

Walt Henderson --- Sports Editor

                   MRS. GRAY

Mrs. Gray, the ever popular homeroom teacher of the junior class, seems to be in her usual cheerful and happy good mood when she gave me the following news to print.

Mrs. Gray is very pleased by the increase of juniors on the honor roll.   This, however, is only a start and she hopes that more shall be on it next time.

Mrs. Gray wishes to extend her wishes to the whole class for a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and a very HAPPY NEW YEAR. ( May we take this space to wish the same to you, Mrs. Gray).  She insists that all the juniors come to see her during the Christmas holidays.

          WHAT IS YOUR NAME??

Many people have been wondering "What does my name really mean?   People who are normally in good health can't sleep nights because of this problem.   In answer to your problem we suggest the following:

Take the word in the first column which has the same first letter as that of your first name.  Do the same with the last column and you last name (e g) John Jones would be Jealous Jerk.  Let's go...

      A    awful           annoyance        

      B     bad              beauty

      C     cute              cat

      D     dumb           dancer

      E      excellent      element

      F      foolish         friend

      G      good            goon

      H      hunky           hep-cat

      I       ignorant        ideal

      J       jealous         jerk

      K      kindly           kid

      L       lovely          louse

      M      manly          moron

      N      nutty            nuisance

      O      only            ostrich

      P       pretty          pug

      Q      quiet            quirk

      R       rusty            rot

      S       stupid          shirker

      T       tough           thug

      U       ugly            upstart

      V      valuable      vulture

      W     weird          weevil

       X     (not even we know)

       Y      young          yearling

       Z      (we give up)

Well, the fire of football has flickered and gone out with the approach of winter and indoor sports.  The coming of snow has heralded the death of the football season and the birth of basketball.  The potential basketball stars had their first practice last Tuesday and were divided into the A and B teams.  Coach Glaab gazed hopefully at what (we hope) will be a crack team to pick against St Joseph's with whom our first game is scheduled.  Those formerly of the football team wishing to try their hand at basketball began on Tuesday of this week, so with these reinforcements a reasonable, sizeable, and formidable team should be the results.     

Coach Glaab took me into his confidence to outline briefly the Athletic schedule for the coming year, so here is a brief forecast--

Boxing and wrestling will be worked in with the regular physical education periods.

Fencing previously considered must be abandoned due to the lack of funds to procure equipment.

A track meet will be held with Tokyo in the spring.

Softball will be organized in place of baseball as softball will draw many more competitors.

Intra-mural teams can be organized.

Swimming and tennis also must need to ostracized (sounds good, huh) due to lack of competition and uncertainty of current weather conditions (say, sounds even better- I should get a job writing a paper.)        

Well that about does it for the year, so pick the sport you're best suited for, and if none of these suit you, you can always organize a chess team or sewing circle.                                              W H       

A JUNIORS FIRST SNOW

I opened one sleep eye to the chill of the winter morning, and pulled the warm quilt farther over my head.   Brrrr! California was never like this.  Then I work with a start.  What was that I had seen?  Everything outside was outlined in gleaming white!! All the familiar objects were made strange and beautified by that fresh clean blanket.  The car, the trees, and even the mossy old wall appeared foreign to my amazed eyes.

At last my hope had been realized.  I had finally seem snow!  I hurried now to get dressed, for I wanted to dash out and make a snowman and throw snowballs at the passing cars.  I struggled with my rubbers and went dashing out the back door.  At my first exuberant step I went skidding suddenly into a sitting position.  After I recovered from my fall, I examined this strange stuff with a little more caution.  How wonderful it was to crunch through the powdery whiteness and press it together into a hard little ball.

As I watched the snow sift gently from the sky to cover the roof top and the fields and saw the boys happily petering each other with snowballs, I realized that California doesn't have everything.  There seems to be nothing like a good snowball to keep people happy and cheer the cold winter season, which helps to make true the Christmas message, "Peace on Earth, Good Will Toward Men".                        Jackie Graham