Surprise Holiday!
Last Thursday, the most amazing thing happened. After study hall we all gathered on the Webb-Marshall to listen to Mr. Maqubela give a talk, in which he intended to remind us to clear up trash on campus.
Beforehand I had heard whispers that Surprise Holiday was around the corner, but I had mostly dismissed them as the rumors they usually turned out to be. Yet that night, walking out into the cold, I couldn’t help but hold out hope that the clean-up talk was really a cover-up for something more exciting.
Sure enough, right after Mr. Maqubela’s message, a car appeared on the Circle—blaring its horn as the senior prefects cheered from inside. So it was true! As they approached, the student crowd began to cheer, and the official announcement was made. Classes were canceled the next day, and we all were granted a much needed day of rest!
Last year, due to COVID, there wasn’t a real Surprise Holiday; we instead had “ventilation” mornings or afternoons. Getting to experience a real Surprise Holiday was something I had really looked forward to. I spent that morning with my roommate Michaela, and we ordered Dunkin’ and went to the Schoolhouse. We planned to catch up on some work and studying, but we ended up watching the first Harry Potter movie while hanging out. It was honestly really nice to finally have a break and for life to slow down a bit. The weather was great too, and later we left to go check out the food and inflatables that were set up on the Circle. There were all kinds of fun things to do, and I spent most of my afternoon messing around on the inflatables with my friends on the Circle.
Last year, due to COVID, there wasn’t a real Surprise Holiday; we instead had “ventilation” mornings or afternoons. Getting to experience a real Surprise Holiday was something I had really looked forward to. I spent that morning with my roommate Michaela, and we ordered Dunkin’ and went to the Schoolhouse. We planned to catch up on some work and studying, but we ended up watching the first Harry Potter movie while hanging out. It was honestly really nice to finally have a break and for life to slow down a bit. The weather was great too, and later we left to go check out the food and inflatables that were set up on the Circle. There were all kinds of fun things to do, and I spent most of my afternoon messing around on the inflatables with my friends on the Circle.
Later, I went back to the Schoolhouse with my friend Mimi, and we watched A Rainy Day in New York, one of her favorites, which was really good. By then it was already dinner, and I felt really happy with how I had spent my day even though I didn’t get a lot of work done. In the end, that's what Surprise Holiday is all about, taking a day off to rest and spend time with the people you care about.
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