We have had many visitors on campus lately. From relatives to aspiring science teachers, people keep showing up at our slippery doorstep. Apprentices from Semester 40 arrived yesterday to mingle with the students and showed up just in time to watch us stumble in after our six mile run. Needless to say we weren’t very talkative. The snow has been melting and we have begun to see more of our beautiful HMI campus.
Now that we are back from expedition, 
we are diving full-force into academic work. In English, we finished the book Ceremony, by Leslie Marmon Silko, that we have been reading for a couple of weeks. Next up, we have a Ceremony essay due, as well as chapter 4 of our science book: The History of Leadville, and an optional response in Practices and Principles: Ethics of the Natural World. Because of all of this work, study halls have been very productive lately, and one of our teachers, Coco, instituted a read aloud for whoever wants to read History or English readings in a group to stay on track.
This past weekend, HMI students suited up in various costumes, including rain pants and 80’s outfits, to compete in the Cabin Throwdown Showdown. Six teams, each compiled of members from the same 
cabin, participated in battles that challenged their utmost strength, knowledge, and grit. Students answered trivia questions about their cabin mates, blindly created pieces of art, and lip synced to mystery songs. Cabin Seven came in first place, winning the infamous Throwdown Showdown trophy, but Cabin Four was in a close second place after their outstanding Lip Sync to “Mr. Brightside,” which had the whole crowd going wild. Can next semester’s students live up to the outstanding performances seen in this past weekend’s Cabin Throwdown Showdown? The world may never know.
During flex-block (a tech-free period) on Monday the 25th, we ran six miles. As we were running, we looked up from the pavement and found ourselves staring into the sunset over the Sawatch range. This view made us realize how lucky we are to have come to a place like HMI, where during school we run through the mountains and get to experience spring in Colorado to the fullest. As the weather gets warmer and the days get longer, students are starting to spend more time outside. During lunch, a group went to play basketball, and another group listened to music outside the Barnes Building at the picnic tables. The sun and light outside are bringing us together and helping us through the stress of studying for the SATs and math assessments.