CHEMAWA(fJAMERICAN
Printed at Chetnaua, Oregon, and Devoted to the Interest of Indian Education
Vo!. XXXII
Wednesday, Oct. 29, 1930
THOSE UNWILLING
There is a trite old saying which time has proven
to embody more truth than poetry, and it is to this
effect: “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t
make him drink.” All too true. To parody the
thought one might say that you can “send a youngster
to school but you can’t make him think.” Why is all
this true? In either case the horse or the youngster
‘ ‘doesn’t want to, ” is unwilling. The whole matter is
distressing. The future of the unwilling student is so
utterly hopeless that it is distressing to contemplate it.
We presume that every school has a few such students
enrolled, and we hope most sincerely that they are few
indeed at Chemawa.
It is during youthful days, while thoughts, actions,
rules of conduct, and ten thousand inestimably valu*
able impressions are being molded into habits that are
to prove life-long, that all students should be awake,
keen and receptive—anxious to get hold of all good
things, both mental and material. The eager and
willing student will gradually work his way to the
head of his class while his unwilling classmate will
gravitate toward the foot of it. The unwilling stu
dent is forming, daily, all the time, a mental condi
tion which will prove a handicap too great for him to
overcome in later years, and will contribute to defeat
in the end. This is not a pleasing or reassuring pic
ture by any means, but we believe it a correct pre
sentation of the matter. Such a student can never
know real happiness himself, nor can he ever help
others to it—his own attitude is an enemy of happi
ness just as it must be of progress.
Such a student is loath to accept and perform his
duties, in class or out of it, and he will forever find
himself at the buttom rung of the ladder, no matter
whether he is in school or not. The probabilities are
that the unwillingness that he has shown during his
school days will increase after he leaves school. He
will be unwilling to make an effort befitting a real
man and it is quite likely that in the end he will wind
up in some hobo camp. One cannot rise without
effort, and the higher one aspires to rise proportion
ately greater must be the effort. Is it worth the
effort, this striving to rise? It most certainly is—
make no mistake about it. The urge to broaden
one’s vision, to better conditions for self and others,
should be cultivated, and a willingness to do so is the
first requisite for success. Add a willingness to work
No. 8
and you have it.
Our students, even one of them, cannot afford to
allow this time of training, of preparation, to pass by
with no profit to themselves. You who are reluctant
to get in and drill, to act, are doing a great injury to
yourselves, as later years and blasted hopes will prove.
So, get busy and stay busy.
There is hope for youth, good, virile youth, always.
Such youth is just waiting for a chance to demon
strate its worth, and wild for the opportunity to do so.
Unwillingness there! When they fail we do not hear
that the teacher was to blame or that So-and-So “had
it in for them.” No, indeed; they are willing even
to the point of accepting the responsibility for their
own failure. And they are more than willing to re
solve to do better next time. The willing student is,
in the final analysis, the “salt of the earth.”
The student alone is responsible for his failure—
should he fail. Be certain of this: The willing stu
dent gets the most. This is always true. A wonder
ful self-developer is the discipline we give ourselves
when we complete a task that is distasteful to us
because it is our duty to do so. This is an example
of willingness being put to the acid test. The ability
to meet such a test will prepare one for the day when
extra demands are made, or necessity requires it.
When extra demands are made the unwilling stu
dent is likely to be found rebellious and disagreeable
in the matter. Here is where the willing student
scores for himself and to the relief and satisfaction of
others. No situation in life will render one immune
from extra duties and demands. Some will be easy,
others hard and trying, but in any event your attitude
will have a bearing on the result.
Three-fourths of the success of an undertaking lies
in the attitude of the one who essays to shoulder the
task. Therefore, if you would make the task seem
easier and your work lighter, place yourself on the
list of the “willing workers.” Chemawa has many
such students—willing fellows, who are making a
good name for themselves and their school— and we
are mighty proud of them. Alas! We have our drones
too, a few of them, but usually their season is short
and they fade from the picture. The only purpose
they serve at a school is that they can be pointed out
to other students as an example of what not to be.
Be studious, industrious, seek opportunities and your
future will be safe.