Hi from Cape Eleuthera!
Its funny how time works here in Eleuthera. Everyday is packed with so many adventures that it feels like a month, but when you take a step back to look at all you have accomplished, it seems like only a day has gone by. Today, the final day of the first academic rotation, marks the halfway point in the Summer 2015’s journey at the Island School. After only a short sixteen days we have stretched ourselves in so many ways—from jumping off high rock, to scuba diving, and making friendships that will last a lifetime.
Following circle this morning, students split up for the usual morning exercise. Except today was different. Under the rising sun, some of us challenged ourselves to find out more about our sense of place through a rejuvenating yoga session in the boathouse (which was much needed after the intense martial-art training last night)! Others made their way to a nearby cut for an epic game of water polo! The final score was 4-4! Who knows? They might just have to finish the game during the free day tomorrow!
This afternoon the Queen Triggers suited up for our last dive in Marine Eco. Focusing on the diverse fish life on the patch reefs, we took out our dive slates and began to explore. While on the reef, we saw Yellowtail Snapper, a school of Blue Chromis, and even a giant hermit crab! Probably the best part of the dive was having the opportunity to explore around Tunnel Rock—one of the best dive sites near the Island School. Today’s dive was a great way to end an exciting and informative week of class.
Meanwhile, the Blue Tangs finished off their Sustainable Systems class by presenting their final projects. We heard that there were a bunch of cool and innovative ideas that could really make an impact if brought to the Island School campus! Oh! The Sargent Majors have returned from their adventures down island! This means that for the first time in two days, we have a full Island School community once again!
Hearing the amazing stories from the Down Island Trip and sharing stories of our own, simply heightened everyone’s excitement to begin the next academic rotation on Tuesday. Tomorrow we have our second day off (everyone is looking forward to a sleep in after the busy week)! Then we will begin our second academic rotation with Queen Triggers on Tourism and Development, Blue Tang on Marine Eco, and the Sargent Majors taking on Sustainable Systems! But before we get to that, the community will be sharing their widespread talents tonight at coffee house!
I (Emily) cannot believe how much I have grown over the last two weeks. Not only have I faced my fear of heights, but I have begun to gain an understanding of what my place in this world is and how my presence impacts the space around me. I have learned so much from this community that I plan to hold onto for the rest of my life. I can’t put into words how excited I am to compare the person I was at the beginning of this journey to the person I will be by the end. I (Ben) am in awe of how much I have grown as a person and as an individual in this short time. In the beginning I was hesitant to step outside my shell, talk to new people and explore the world around me. Today I feel like I have known this community for a lifetime and all the worries and hesitations have evaporated. The first sixteen days have truly been the best of our lives; we can’t wait to experience all that the next sixteen have in store!
Your Caciques of the day,
-Ben Crandall and Emily Yeager