Easy Adjustment Down Under

Posted on April 13, 2011 by admin

On my way over to Melbourne, I had a very long time to think about what lay ahead. A new family, a new school, and, essentially, a new life would be just a few of the challenges awaiting me. As daunting as it seemed, I was very excited by this new opportunity. Since then, I have done all sorts of stereotypical Aussie things: surfing, feeding kangaroos, watching the Grand Prix and going to the footy.

Barely a week into this experience, I went surfing at Ocean Grove. Our Canadian instructor was good enough to get me up a bunch of times, although I did fall quickly. The important thing is that I was up long enough for a bunch of pictures. Nathan was, of course, better than me, even though they have only been surfing a couple of times.

Australia has an abundance of unique animals. From the kangaroo to the koala, Australia is typically characterized by its strange marsupials. Last weekend, we went to a wildlife park at Ballarat, an hour and a half from Melbourne. I had the experience of patting a koala and feeding kangaroos and emus. We also saw all kinds of Australian animals, from crocodiles to Tasmanian devils to wombats.

While here in Melbourne, I had the experience of going to the Melbourne Grand Prix. I “barrack for,” or support, Lewis Hamilton, for obvious reasons. The hometown hero, Mark Webber, finished just behind Hamilton in qualifying, which is the part of the race that we went to.

Another unique part of Australia is its sports, owing to the mix of British and Aboriginal heritage. The most typical Aussie sport is probably Aussie rules football, or footy. I had the experience of going to a footy game last Sunday. The Hawks, the club we like, was up against another Melbourne-based team, the Demons. Although the Hawks were down by 30 points, they came back and ended up winning by 45. Another Australian experience associated with footy is a meat pie. They have a different style to Canadian tourtière, which tasted more like a Cornish pasty.

I’m having a great time here in Australia and I don’t want this experience to end. Unfortunately, it has to end at some point, and my time here is already half done. —Andrew Hamilton ’13

Eyes Wide Open

Posted on April 11, 2011 by admin

I have just returned from the most incredible trip to a small Peruvian village named Lunahuana. My last four days have been packed with adventure and memories that I will treasure forever. As I rafted the rapids, zip-lined across the beautiful lands and climbed the Inca ruins, I was amazed with this beautiful country.

Lunahuana is a very poor area that was hugely affected by the earthquake that hit Peru in 2007. On Friday, we packed into a small van and drove to a nearby school. Along with 15 other students, I was given the task of building a garden for the children to play in. I will never forget it; the faces of the children brightened as we walked into their tiny rundown building. As I began to work, I suddenly felt small warm hands on the back of my leg. I turned around and saw three little girls looking up at me with the sweetest expressions. For the rest of day, those girls were attached to me. I was amazed by how much affection they showed me. It was very hard to say goodbye to them.

When I arrived back at the campground and started to change into warmer clothes I heard soft Spanish whispers outside my tent. As I peered outside to see where the voices were coming from, I saw two little girls covered in dust and wearing worn-out clothes. They quickly approached and motioned for me to come sit with them on the grass. Although we could barley understand each other, I sat with them for over one hour. At one point, they kept repeating one question over and over again pointing towards my shoes. I kept telling them I didn’t understand them but they wouldn’t give up until they had the answer to their question. I finally asked another student to translate for me and found out they had been asking me how expensive my shoes were. I had never thought twice about my shoes, I’ve been lucky enough to always have something to wear on my feet. When I was their age the price of shoes would have never crossed my mind. As I thought of an answer, I looked at them; neither girl was wearing shoes. Both had filthy feet covered in cuts. Lunahuana was an unforgettable experience. –Alexia Miller ’13

The Senselessness of Locking Horns

Posted on April 6, 2011 by admin

There’s an old adage that “temper is what gets most of us into trouble, but it is pride which keeps us there.” This can be an issue at school where students are in close quarters and face the daily challenge of balancing demands from parents, teachers, friends and acquaintances.

We can learn something about the combination of unbridled temper and pride from an old monastery in a place called Bebenhausen, Germany. Hanging on the wall are two large pairs of deer horns. What’s unique is that the horns are tightly interlocked and permanently stuck together. The horns were found in that position many years ago. Apparently two mature bucks had been fighting for territorial superiority and, in their jousting, their horns became jammed together. Ultimately, they died in a fighting position. Unable to find a way to cooperate they were literally stuck, yet disabled.

These locked horns form a valuable symbol for the the many relationships found in today’s homes, schools, arenas, city traffic jams, and the list goes on. Unfortunately, like those two bucks in Germany, far too many people become entrenched in their positions on emotional topics and angrily oppose those who confront them. In the process, they find ways to figuratively “lock horns,” and the more they insult or abuse one another, the horns lock together tighter.

So if you’re at odds with someone today, go to that person, bury your false pride and find a way to reconcile and make amends. You may be surprised to find that the other person wants reconciliation as much as you do.

Let’s face it, reconciliation and compromise are not easy. Our students need to learn that life is about a series of compromises. No one is always right and we cannot always get our own way. The more we embed an understanding of that into our daily lives, the more successful we will be. –-Chris Shannon, Headmaster

Ronde #3 du Florida Winter Tour

Posted on April 4, 2011 by admin

Du 20 au 27 mars, j’étais à Ocala en Floride pour la dernière ronde du Florida Winter Tour. Encore une fois, je participais à des compétitions dans la catégorie Rotax Senior avec mon équipe de kart, PSL Karting. Cette dernière ronde, comme les deux autres auparavant, consistait de deux journées de courses et une journée de qualifications. Pour la course du samedi, je commençais la course en 21e position et pour celle de dimanche j’étais placé en 24e position (sur environ 40 pilotes). Samedi était une bonne journée. Après avoir été poussé en dehors de la piste et m’être retrouvé en dernière position au début de la course, j’ai réussi à me placer en 17e position. Sans incident au départ, et peut-être avec un peu plus de chance, j’aurais eu la possibilité de me retrouver sur le podium vu que j’avais les mêmes temps que les pilotes en tête de peloton. Mon kart était parfait pendant tout le weekend et m’a permis d’aller chercher plusieurs bons résultats au cours de cette dernière ronde. Durant ce week-end, j’étais le Québécois le plus rapide et je suis revenu au Québec très fier. Dans deux semaines j’espère continuer mes exploits à Miami pour un weekend de course qui fera partie du Pan American Rotax Challenge. –Simon Lauzé ’11

Australia Exchange: An Easy Adjustment

Posted on March 31, 2011 by admin

The last two weeks have been a blast! Just minutes after landing in Melbourne, Australia, we were off to the beach in Torquay. My first weekend was spent surfing and playing footy on the beach. Before I knew it, it was time for school. Getting used to new people and school was much easier than I had imagined. Everyone was so nice and welcoming. It was from that moment that I knew my stay in Melbourne would be unforgettable.

My first week was spent getting used to the time zone and my new lifestyle. Once I had settled in a little better my weekends started becoming more action packed. My host family has taken me to a footy match, Geelong vs. St. Kilda. It was a great match. Something I found cool about it was that the M.C.G. has a capacity of 100,000 fans, although, the turn out was only around 48,000 as it was a little colder outside than Aussie’s are used to.

By far, the most exciting thing that we’ve done was going to Healesville Sanctuary. Healesville is a zoo that focuses on Australia’s famous animals. We saw all sorts of animals such as Tasmanian devils, kangaroos, koalas, dingoes and more. However, the best part of the experience was feeding the emus and having a picnic with the family. To finish off a great day, we went out for Thai food, which was also a tasty new experience for me.

Only two weeks left of school until spring holidays. I’m really excited to be able to experience more of Australia but not excited to say goodbye to close friends. — Julie Schneiderman ’13