By Caciques Brendan and Marius

Today was a particularly important day at The Island School. It was the first time showers were turned off and strong restrictions were placed on water. We were starting to run out of it! In an effort to be more sustainable, the school collects rainwater run-off from the roofs and stores it in large underground cisterns for future use. Since our semester takes place during the rainy season, we usually don’t have to strongly conserve water. But something happened a few days ago. There was a leak. Over the weekend, toilets in the library ran; the school lost 15% of the water supply. Sea showers are now enforced; we have to bring biodegradable soap and shampoo into the ocean with us and bath there instead of our indoor or outdoor showers. As lovely as it is to wake up in the morning and then go bathing in the sea, my peers and I quickly realized that the salt stays on. All day. I learned a lesson today; every resource here is valued.

by Caciques Tori and Eliott

Today we woke up early for our 6:30circle and second round of run swims.  By 8:00 am the final half of students and faculty had successfully completed their run swims and headed off to chores and then breakfast. For the second day of official classes we split into our groups and rotated through Literature, Math, and Histories of the Bahamas.  For Literature we broke into our sections and started harkness discussions surrounding the difficult plot of the epic poem Omeros.  Similarly, in History we discussed a background reading on the History of Eleuthera as well as talked about how important it is to reflect on perspective and various points of views while writing history papers.  Continue reading →

by Caciques Lincoln and Zeke

Today is a day of remembrance. We look back upon the tragedy that was September 11, 2001. We appreciate all that we have, and feel sorrow for those that have lost. We also look back on what we as a group have left at home, whether it be family, friends, or any other matter that we care about. However, we didn’t just look back today. We also looked forward. On this day full of freedom and exploration we look towards this upcoming semester. We think about what will undoubtedly be a unique semester, Continue reading →

by Cacique Tyler Courville

A bead of sweat slipped from my nose plopped onto the mat below me. My arms trembled and my breathing was shallow and labored. My ears were filled with the grunts and gasps from those around me and the calm voice of our instructor Brady: “If this isn’t enought of a challenge you can also lift your feet above your head.” I twisted towards the front of the room and my eyes widened. Brady had somehow manuvered herself into a flawless headstand. Her breathing was measured, her eyes were closed, she seemed almost…comfortable. My eyes narrowed, my arms tensed and I began to lift my feet off the mat. Continue reading →

by Cacique Grace Fowler

We made our way down the mooring line slowly, hand over hand, until we reached the sea floor fifty-five feet below. Curious fish swam at a safe distance as we explored the reef. Spend just two minutes hovering at over one spot, and you will see hundreds of different fish and reef plants. Colorful sea fans and anemones waving in the current. Bold purple, red, and yellow fish. Cleaner shrimp courageously standing inside a grouper’s mouth and thousands of tiny minnows swimming in unison. Frilly anemones that close themselves in a split second when touched and coral polyps reaching out to collect particles. Reefs are a never-ending I Spy book, no matter how much time you spend, there is always more to discover. Continue reading →

by Cacique Jane Drinkard

Today was one of the longest days we’ve had here. It was a big day for all of us; Kayak groups 3 and 4 left for their 3-day kayak adventure and the rest of us broke off into our scuba groups to start scuba week. It also marked my weekaversary here at the island school (woohoo!) Many of us had never been scuba diving before so some of us were kind of anxious to get into the water. Maxey talked to us last night about how the underwater world makes up 98% of our earth yet we’ve hardly explored any of it’s depths. He lowered his voice and in front of a magnificent projected photograph of the earth he informed us that tomorrow we would all be “aquanauts,” which is the equivalent to underwater astronauts. After our morning exercise of psychos and swimming with our fins we embarked on our scuba journey. Continue reading →

by Caciques Carter and Griffen

Three shrill notes from the irate alarm clock permeate through the room of 12 sleeping boys. Brendan slaps down the source of this rude interruption and slowly the 12 of us roll out of bed, preparing for our first run, a 4.25 jog through the lush wilderness. Despite fighting new temperatures, unreal humidity, and foreign surroundings, we all returned with smiles of accomplishment and a new-found pride. After brief chores and breakfast, we said our goodbyes to our friends who had spent their morning preparing for the 3-day kayak trip around south Eleuthera; we would stay behind, to spend that time learning how to scuba dive.

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by Cacique Emily Peters

The bright blue waters of the little Island School Marina cove lapped over the wooden beams holding up the dock. My partner and I had our feet dangling over the edge of bright sunlit dock; watching the little fish swim around in large groups. We were waiting- waiting for directions on how to make the next knot we were learning. Today one of the things we learned how to tie various knots, knots for keeping boats to the docks, knots for a strong hold, and knots that could be used for anything. Through the hole, you make a loop; the “bunny” comes out of the hole, around the “tree,” back through the hole, and then pull tight. Our beloved scuba instructors kept saying, “Practice makes Permanent.” Continue reading →