Official Organ Of The Slavonic Benevolent Order Of The State Of Texas, Founded 1897. BROTHERHOOD
HUMANITY
BENEVOLENCE
Postmaster: Please Send Form 3579 with Undeliverable Copies ROCNiK 61 — CiSLO 11 to: SUPREME LODGE SPJST, P.O. Box 100, Temple, Texas 76501.
MARCH 14, 1973
FROM THE EDITOR'S DESK This year District V is the lead-off district for the spring district meetings which will be held Sunday, March 18 in Rosenberg, with Lodge No. 175, Fort Bend, hosting. For further information refer to the various district officers' letters in this issue. With the consistant communication through the editor's office, it is cert p,in they are anticipating a large turnout. Brothers and sisters do not disappoint them, because a lot of preparations have been exhausted by the district officers and you certainly can attend at least one meeting per year for your benefit to see and hear what the SPJST Society is all about. Give it a try, won't you? • • Lodge No. 84, Dallas is celebrating its 63rd anniversary this Sunday, March 18. The membership of Lodge 84 is to be commended for their continued activity and enthusiasm and their Choral Group for their appreciated interest in singing. We wish them continued success: • • Hard work and preparation have been progressing for some time for the International Folk Festival which will be held in Galveston on March 24th and 25th. Begin plans to join the fine folks at the folk festival now! The people in charge will be eager to show a glimpse of the wealth of many folk traditions of Texas at the festival. It
You can't control the length of your life , but you can control its width and depth. You can't control the contour of your countenance, but you can control its expression. You can't control the other fellow's opportunities, but you can grasp your own. You can't control the weather, but you can control the moral atmosphere which surrounds you. You can't control hard times or rainy days, but you can bank money now to boost you through both. Why worry about things you can't control? Get busy controlling things that depend on you. would be advisable for the people in different sections of the state (especially in the District V area) to cooperate by letting the people know as soon as possible what songs, music, dances, legends, singing, handicrafts, and other lore are most characteristic of their communities; and that they will begin as soon as possible to work out plans to join the folks in Galveston in March. Some of our senior SPJST members perhaps might remember b e f ore the third National Folk Festival, which
took place in Dallas as a part of the Texas Centennial Exposition in 1936, that more than thirty community folk festivals were held in different localities. These various community celebrations played a vital part in informing Texas of the rich history, much of which is reflected in folk traditions known and used by Texans from the horse and buggy days until the present time. To those of you who are not acquainted with folk festivals, and wonder what it's all about, it's merry-making friends, recreation and good fun. All festivals' have always been chiefly for gayety, release of spirits, and selfexpression, no matter what other seemingly more serious purpose they might also have served. Speaking of gayety, actually nothing of the gayety of festivals has been lost because many of those who participated in them are keenly conscious of the significant possibilities of folk activites which assembled groups of diverse cultural backgrounds, in a spirit of unity and a much better understanding. Generally speaking, a folk festival is an educational, recreational and cooperative type of activity for young and old people, and it would be commendable of you to venture to one of these type of enormous undertakings and witness something for yourself that