The First(s) of Spring

The sweet, saturated aroma of orange blossoms, the tenor continuo of bees pollinating—how could you possibly fail to realize it’s the first week of the first full month of spring? Then, suddenly, firsts are popping up all around you. The second is a psychological principle called confirmation bias—or, as a blogger recently posted on a website this writer frequents, the blooming of “an aesthetic practice of humble attention.” Here’s a first look at a sample representing just seven days of Life at Thacher (and only those who had time to scribble something down). Suffice to say this is just the beginning.

•first time hearing the ka-thump ka-thump of a horse's heart through a stethoscope—in turn, each member of Dr. Kristin Finch’s Vet Med course: Rita Walton, Danny Waldman, Genevieve Jensen, Max Pillsbury, Josh Jackson, Sondra Oxley, Kendra Carter, Eloise Callender, Anna North, and Erin Von Gehr

•first run down the ring-spearing course—David Andrade, on Hannum

•first Thacher winner of the CalTech Signature Award, “recognizing a junior student who has demonstrated innovative and creative thinking or problem solving; the motivation to go beyond what is required or expected; and curiosity and the joy of discovery in mathematics, the sciences, or related fields”—Wils Dawson (presented the award at Assembly by Dr. Vyhnal, Chair of the Science Department)

•first time in a lacrosse goal as goalie—Annie Ford (in a game against Midland, in which she racked up 18 saves and a 75% save percentage)

•first time participating in an Extreme Cowboy Race—Cam Schryver (and don’t ask how astoundingly successful he was just yet; we’ve been sworn to secrecy until the show airs later this year)

•first to answer Uncle Jack Huyler's “How Well Do You Know Your School?” question about where the William S. McCaskey Commons is located on campus—Alessandra Waste

•first time really studying Shakespeare—a few freshmen, sinking their teeth into As You Like It

•first time chairing a WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) accreditation committee—Alice Meyer, who spent five grueling but enlightening days evaluating and making recommendations to the Sherman Indian School in Riverside, Calif.

•first time racing along the sandy flat stretch of the Sespe Trail above the river east of Piedra Blanca Creek (near Patton’s Cabin) with your Head of School leading the charge—Ben Eastburn, Marco Hernandez, Robbie Yeager, Jesse Garrett, Marquis Warren, and Alec Grushkin

•not far away from those racers above on their camping trip, first time seeing, killing, skinning, roasting and eating rattlesnake—Mackenzie Boss, Katie Taylor, Jack Sligh, Kyle Griffith, and Jesse Gonzales. Was it tasty? Depends on whether you believe Jack (“Passes for rubber”) or Katie (“It’s actually kind of good”).

•first wild kit fox sighting—Peter Sawyer
As I was getting ready for dinner the other night, I looked out the bedroom window and saw an unfamiliar movement out of the corner of my eye.  Having trained as a field biologist many moons ago, I look out for unusual movements in the bush, as they often lead to new and exciting experiences.  In this case I couldn't place the movement right away, so I got out my binoculars and focused in on . . . a kit fox who was curling itself up on a flat rock down in the barranca.  Kit foxes are beautiful little foxes with very large ears and a bushy tail, and never having seen one in the "wild" before, I was delighted at my good fortune.  You never know what you will experience if you keep your eyes and ears open on the Thacher campus.  This time the movement out of the corner of my eye turned into the first kit fox I had ever seen in the wild.

•first time playing on a lacrosse team—Frances Kelsey, Shawn Keyani

•"my first days as an adult! (I turned 18 on April 5.)"—Ethan Nonomura

•first time scoring points in Gymkhana (two in one day in the Ribbon Race!)—Noelani Nasser

•first time preparing for a faculty sabbatical: bought tickets to Europe today!—Alison Curwen [Alison and Austin, plus Darcy, Tag, and Stapley, will be in Bristol, England, next year]

•first time “I've ever met anyone from Visalia while not actually in Visalia: I just found out that my horse, Katie Ann, is from my home town!—Wohona Delgadillo

•first hit to the grass in baseball—Sarra Wynn, solo representative of her gender on the baseball team

•first time in the top three in Gymkhana—Sean Wyatt
Others in the first line-up announced this season:
1 Annie Mulligan
2 Sean Wyatt
3 Graham Abbey (#1 Freshman)
4  Jane Fisher
5  Sondra Oxley
6  Steffi Star (#2 Freshman)
7  Avery Hellman (#3 Freshman)
8  Kyle Griffith (#4 Freshman)
9  Marquis Warren (#5 Freshman)
10  Hector Villanueva
and, while we’re at it, the Top Freshmen, 6 through 10: Chris Colson, Richy Yun, John Cowles, Maggie Miller, Robbie Yeagle

•first time homemade donuts ever mass-produced—that is, three at a time—at Open House

•first time “practicing the sack race for Gymkhana, and falling off”—Carson Land

•the first sound of a baseball hitting the team's brand new Nike "Torque" bat—Harry Hoffman

•“first time I've seen a swarm of bees”—Patrick Teague

•first time being a grandma—Bonnie LaForge

•"first time turning in my Senior Ex!!![for final review]"—Robin Walter

•first time in a l-o-n-g time, in preparation for a horse camping trip mid-month, riding the trails near campus—Roger Klausler on Baja   It has been an invigorating and soothing symphony for the five senses.  The silence, broken only by the sounds of the buzzing of the bees in the wildflowers—abundant blues and whites and yellows—and  Baja's gentle plodding and occasional snorts; the scent of horse sweat and grass that Baja grabs for a snack; the taste of dust on dry lips; the feel of leather and rope; the magnificent views of the Upper and Lower Ojai Valleys.

•first time “I have ever seen a beach on the Pergola on a beach that hadn't been there a day ago”—Lauren Bosche and Sienna Courter, on one of the Seniors’ April Fool’s Day pranks

•first time competing in the 300 meter hurdles—Lauren Joseph

•first time “really fooled” by her students—Cecilia Ortiz
On April 1, I entered my Spanish 3 Honors class, and as always I said, "Hola, ¿cómo están jóvenes?" [Hi, How are you (kids)?] All answered, as always: "tired," "fine," "sick," etc.

Then, as always, I said "Tarea [homework]?"--They are to hand in their homework before we start class.

This time, they all looked at me as if I was crazy and said, in Spanish, "What homework?" All looked puzzled, as if to ask, "Why are you asking for homework if you did not give any?" I looked as I do every day. Besides, when this class complains of the amount of homework, I always remind them that they are in SPANISH 3 HONORS, emphasizing that HONORS means special and so they have to work harder. We make fun of it every time possible. When someone complains, I ask the class: "What class is this?" And they laughingly answer: "3 HONORES!"

I kept looking back at them; my eyes passed across all of them back and forth in a state of surprise. I could not believe that they had not remembered the homework, but suddenly all took it out--they'd been hiding it under the desk!  "APRIL FOOLS!"

Their faces were glowing: they really had me in their hands. I actually felt relief when they said, "April Fools!"  I started to laugh and so did they and I told them that they really had me. They were thrilled that they had  pulled it out. It was the first time that a class has made a prank that had affected me, and that was fun to have had.  We all loved it. . . but then we had to go back to reality and on with class....

•”first time a group of my friends have thought up tons of amazing, and possibly the best pranks ever seen, but to realize that April 1^st was already over. . .”—Laura Ammons (with a sigh)

•“first in my lane in the Keyhole Race (second fastest on my team, second overall), and it’s the first week in April I’ve ever spent in California!”—Dan Hu

•first Thacher lacrosse goal!—Nicky Wilder

•first dance performance/competition with the Dance Ensemble—Anna North (“It was spectacular!”)

•first time (in four years) returning to the Freshman Wall (as Amber Lakin said, “Definitely a big thing for all of us seniors right now!”)—The Senior Class
 
•first time scoring a goal in a scrimmage—Tom Wilkinson

•first place (for the second year running) in the IEA (Interscholastic Equestrian Association) Zone 10 Finals held at Thacher, and therefore going on to the Nationals in Massachusetts later this month—the Thacher Equitation Team (Nicole Haseltine, Leandra Cooper, Lauren Bosche, Georgi de Rham, Kristin Sawyer, Avery Hellman, Maggie Miller, and Mary Ellen Funke, and behind the scenes, Rita Walton, coached to victory by Elizabeth Reynolds Mahoney CdeP 1988)

•first public reading of a short story written during her Independent Afternoon Project last season—Christy Karefa-Johnson

•first time sitting up in a firetruck (courtesy of a friendly fireman on campus to watch the Thacher v. RLS lacrosse game)—Rob Carney, Javi McGowan, Charlie Elmore, and Hayden & Hiram Hooper

•first of the spring wildflowers: “the trails are awash in Wishbone flower, Wild Hyacinth, Mariposa Lily, Star Lily, Hairy Fringe-Pod, Lupine, Fiesta Flower, Purple Sage, White Yarrow.... well, too many to name!”—Julie Manson

•“first time pulling a school wide Senior Prank!!!”—Lindsay Oliver

•”first time doing more than a Hat Trick in lacrosse, and first time resorting to feeding Pesky three bagels before catching him”—Emily Combs

•first bubbles blown in first swim lesson—Hiram Hooper

•"first time 1) allowing someone to jump up on my horse with me in the Rescue Race, 2) knocking over a pole in a race this season, 3) seeing someone pick up the sack with a seemingly easy grace, and 4) waking up to see several tipped-over wheelbarrows on the steps of Casa (Happy April 1^st!)"—Cynthia Santos

•first-hand appreciation for and perspective on “the gift of riding—Sarina Patel
Today, I was the side-walker for a boy in TROT [Therapeutic Riding of Thacher] named Joey, who was riding a horse for the very first time in his life. It wasn't the first time I’d side-walked a TROT student, but it was a first to see someone so proud and happy to be simply astride a walking horse. He kept saying, "I'm so proud to be riding Hannah. I'm so proud." And Joey was so attentive and full of pure happiness and excitement that it made me feel proud of him, too.

And, in the final “First” for many Thacher Toads taking in the view down the Valley and across to the mountains, this, from The Space Weather News:

SUNSET ALERT: When the sun goes down tonight [4/7], step outside and look west.  Weather permitting you'll see a slender equinox crescent Moon hanging above the rosy glow of sunset.  Framed by the cobalt blue of early evening, the Moon reveals its "da Vinci glow" or Earthshine, a pale impression of the full Moon inside the vivid crescent--a beautiful sight.

Chalk one up for serious understatement. Ah, yes: the knock-you-out-at-the-knees beauty of the Ojai in Spring!


Photography: Joy Sawyer-Mulligan, Amanda Ach CdeP 2008