From beginning to end this was an action packed whirlwind of a Sunday and the kids just had a ball! Quite frankly, it just does not get better than this! It was a scorching hot day and that meant that everyone had a fabulous time whether it was splashing about in the water, drinking mocktails, climbing, smashing cricket balls or crashing down water slides.....
On the Saturday before, the Prospective Junior Boarders came in and had a cracking time. They were whisked off by the Northcotts for a walk with a twist. They were out for hours rambling and lit a fire, cooked chunky sausages, played games and splashed in the river. Tremendous fun!
Saturday night was crash out time for everyone!
Sunday morning everyone bounced out of their beds and tucked into a mouth watering breakfast. The Prospective Boarders piled into a minibus with Mr Watt and went climbing and abseiling. Mr Watt said they tested themselves and really bonded as a group. Mrs Taylor took a group off to Repton to play a tennis tournament where they did marvellously well. Meanwhile, back at base we had the usual morning service and letter writing.....
The visiting speaker was Mr Gary Philips, Registrar at Oundle who spoke very wisely about the need to appreciate what we have got when we realise there are children across the globe who have virtually nothing. He described a boy in India whose only possession was a tin bowl from which he drank, ate and begged. He received a round of applause from everyone in the congregation.
We were then all relieved to take off our jackets and ties and crack on with the myriad of activities. The 4th Year boys and girls assembled quickly and were given a map, a bottle of water and some sun tan cream and were told to get to the Wildgoose Estate as quick as they could!
Map reading skills were mixed but Mr Mace's team cheated and took a short cut nearly overtaking Mr Donaldson's lot who, nevertheless, managed to get ahead. Emma H and Alex T were some of the best navigators. When they arrived at the Wildgoose's they were treated to a sumptious lunch and then engaged in three different activities all designed to test their mettle. Mr Watt took a merry band off for a marathon of rock climbing, Mr March of Archery Events taught some boys and girls some ancient skills with the bow and Mr Wildgoose gave some careful fishing lessons and ensured the children managed to catch a few trout despite the hot weather!
We cannot thank the Wildgooses enough for their magnificent hospitality which made this day possible. The children had a marvellous time thanks to them and it was hugely kind of them to host this event.
So.... what else was going on? Well, after a bbq and some water slides.......
the Slieve Mor girls decided to party! The had rainbow mocktails and smoothies at the Berry's and lounged around on the lawn getting those tans ready for the summer holidays! Others however, were a little more restless.... a full scale water war ensued!
The Hillcrest girls had a wonderful time at home with the Seddon's too and managed to catch a toad as well as play lots of fun games!
However, it was not all larking about, there was some serious stuff going on too and with two Dads v Lads games on the go there was a fabulous atmosphere out on the fields.
Dads were narrowly defeated in both games but there were some magnificent performances on both sides. Perhaps the prize should go to Mr Stables who dashed between the Tunbridge Memorial game and the 5th Year game... dedicated father!
The last moments of the afternoon were magical. The children laughed and played, padding around in bare feet. Boys and girls, second and fifth years mingled out on the grass and just soaked up the last rays of sunshine bringing to a close what was a perfect day. The children had all behaved wonderfully and were a credit to their school and their parents. Precious moments!When one reflects on Mr Gary Philips' assembly one really does see just how precious these days are for everyone involved.
Well done everyone and enjoy the exeat next weekend.
Posted on
Sun, May 23, 2010
by RDM