Liana Star, Grade 12
UWC Mostar
#1
We could hear raindrops crashing heavily on the roof of the small building that was protecting us from an undesired shower. The walls and the tables were all covered with dry paint as if this room had witnessed a paintbrush war. There were unfinished canvases piled up at different places in the classroom. If you look more closely you will also notice clay sculptures or works made with wires. The smell of paint was hovering around us but that didn’t stop us from concentrating on our task.
Four of my friends and I were studying in the art room on a Thursday night. I loved this place as it was away from the hustle and bustle of the campus. We were all starting to get tired and just needed an excuse to escape our academic responsibilities at that moment. Suddenly, we heard a small “crack!” and water started pouring out of the ceiling. We looked at each other bewildered, and burst out laughing. That was our excuse.
We started talking and laughing and everything seemed so natural for people who have known each other for less than two weeks. We put on music and one of my Costa Rican friends tried to teach us a Costa Rican dance move. I tried to keep up as best I could, but dancing really wasn't one of my skills.
I looked at them and knew at that moment how much these people were going to mean to me at the end of this school year. I felt at home, like I belonged here, with these people that didn’t even speak the same language as me, and that was one of the most meaningful moments of my UWC experience.
#2
Every Friday, we love to have a football game to decompress after a long week of school. That day it was raining like I had never seen it rain before. Convinced that the game was canceled, I sat on my bed and started planning for a different Friday evening when all of a sudden I received a message from one of my second years saying: “Where are you!? We are about to start the game!”.
My brain hadn’t processed the information yet that I was already sports clothes on, heading to the football field. Everyone was already there. I picked a team and before we even started playing, I was already wet to the bones.
We were running under the rain, sticking out our tongues and waiting for a drop of water to land on them, falling on the wet grass and getting up as if nothing had happened. Jokes and teasing were coming from all sides, and we couldn't stop laughing.
When we finished the game, we started sliding on our stomachs in the mud. My white tee-shirt took a nice brown poop color, but it didn’t really matter. I felt good. As if all the stress and problems of everyday life flew away and only the present moment mattered.
We ended up showering, clothes on, in the social center showers, spreading mud everywhere, which we should clean up later on. But like I said, only the present moment really counted…
We could hear raindrops crashing heavily on the roof of the small building that was protecting us from an undesired shower. The walls and the tables were all covered with dry paint as if this room had witnessed a paintbrush war. There were unfinished canvases piled up at different places in the classroom. If you look more closely you will also notice clay sculptures or works made with wires. The smell of paint was hovering around us but that didn’t stop us from concentrating on our task.
Four of my friends and I were studying in the art room on a Thursday night. I loved this place as it was away from the hustle and bustle of the campus. We were all starting to get tired and just needed an excuse to escape our academic responsibilities at that moment. Suddenly, we heard a small “crack!” and water started pouring out of the ceiling. We looked at each other bewildered, and burst out laughing. That was our excuse.
We started talking and laughing and everything seemed so natural for people who have known each other for less than two weeks. We put on music and one of my Costa Rican friends tried to teach us a Costa Rican dance move. I tried to keep up as best I could, but dancing really wasn't one of my skills.
I looked at them and knew at that moment how much these people were going to mean to me at the end of this school year. I felt at home, like I belonged here, with these people that didn’t even speak the same language as me, and that was one of the most meaningful moments of my UWC experience.
#2
Every Friday, we love to have a football game to decompress after a long week of school. That day it was raining like I had never seen it rain before. Convinced that the game was canceled, I sat on my bed and started planning for a different Friday evening when all of a sudden I received a message from one of my second years saying: “Where are you!? We are about to start the game!”.
My brain hadn’t processed the information yet that I was already sports clothes on, heading to the football field. Everyone was already there. I picked a team and before we even started playing, I was already wet to the bones.
We were running under the rain, sticking out our tongues and waiting for a drop of water to land on them, falling on the wet grass and getting up as if nothing had happened. Jokes and teasing were coming from all sides, and we couldn't stop laughing.
When we finished the game, we started sliding on our stomachs in the mud. My white tee-shirt took a nice brown poop color, but it didn’t really matter. I felt good. As if all the stress and problems of everyday life flew away and only the present moment mattered.
We ended up showering, clothes on, in the social center showers, spreading mud everywhere, which we should clean up later on. But like I said, only the present moment really counted…
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