The Confidence of Youth

1920

There are some moments in our lives when obsessed by discouragements and failures we have made, we think with bitterness of the time when we looked forward with eager eyes, and glowing hearts to the opportunities to demonstrate our ability to carve out a great success for ourselves. We recall almost with contempt the joy we felt when we first arrived at the dignity of finding a position and the satisfaction of knowing that we at least stood upon our own feet and were not dependent upon others.

We did not become discouraged because perhaps we were forced to begin at the foot of the ladder, and even when we found the climbing hard work and the setbacks we received surpassed our successes we did not murmur, but pushed upward as far as we could. We thrilled to the young blood that flowed through our veins and warmed us into action; we could not realize our experience and because this was so we dared heights which later on proved beyond our reach, and when we achieved a failure instead of a success we did not grow discouraged.

There is a certain buoyancy of spirit and elasticity of hope in our early years that carry us forward over the roughest of roads to approximately our goal, and it is these qualities, says the Charleston (S.C.) News and Courier, that make life-in-the-making so happy a season for the majority of persons. It is only when failures pile up, and discouragements grow, and one ambition after another are denied fulfillment that we begin to lose that faith that has kept us alive, not alone faith in the ultimate achievement of our hopes, but also faith in ourselves without which we cannot expect to do very much.

—Saturday Blade, Chicago, Feb. 28, 1920, p. 6.