December 12, 2008

On December 7, the 10^th day before our unforgettable semester comes to a close, RMS XXI completed the Fun Run. The run was one of those things that was fun at times, difficult at many other times, but one hundred percent rewarding for everyone in the end. Even those who were unable to run, Chap and Claire M, still cheered everyone on at the aid stations and in the buses, taking not-so-flattering shots of the rest of us in our various states of pain.

In terms of the finishing times, Dan Prior fell 25 seconds short of breaking the RMS record of 1:10:30, leaving RMS XXI as the second fastest semester in RMS history. The second place runner was Potter, followed by Brendan Buckland. In the other gender category (the girls), Mackenzie Gurrola finished first with a solid 1:32:45. Hillary Saunders finished second, followed by Mo Yang. All in all, everyone was happy, excited, and proud of everyone else in our incredible semester.

By far the greatest part of the several hour experience was seeing the HMI sign with the group of people dancing and cheering runners on for the last stretch down the snow-covered driveway to the growing crowd of screaming friends, all with big smiles and outstretched, hugging arms. "Sandstorm," "Ants Marching," and "I Believe In A Thing Called Love" were some of the songs used to pump the runners up for the last leg down the driveway and later for the upper-body only dance party (legs were incapacitated) that took place after all had finished. Some describe the aftermath of the run as “really, super painful,” but we all know that this is exactly how it should feel and as Molly would say, it is "type two" fun.

After the run most of us went to the local pool for a refreshing swim and sit in the hot tub to rest our aching muscles. For AMX since the Fun Run, because we are no longer training, we have done a cheesy 80’s work out video (on VHS nonetheless) which was very fun, gone for walks in the snow, had a morning salsa dance, and just for kicks went for a run on Friday. As everyone begins to realize that in four days we will be flying out for good, there has been a huge explosion of camaraderie and love, and a push to relish these last days together as RMS XXI. We have all played charades in the main building, stayed up late with the cabin, and most of all we have really become a rock-solid community. As we head out on our final HMI milestone, overnight solos, everyone is realizing how much this semester has changed us.

As per usual, the last week of classes was jam-packed. On Monday we visited a house that is 'off the grid', meaning it gets all it energy from renewable sources. All the students were really interested in the house. United States History had a 5-page research paper on the cause of the Civil War. AP United States History week had a quiz, test, and a data based question. In English class with Reynolds, everyone was assigned a Final Project. The project was to think about what your relationship with the natural world would be in your ideal world. The papers were 1-2 pages and we read them in class and then asked questions of each reader. This was an important project because it helped us reflect and think about our connection to the natural world now and what we want our connection to be. The Spanish classes finished up 'Grammar Boot Camp' and took a test. French students also had test. Finally, in precalculus, some students got the opportunity to shoot potato guns. And, although we were all glad that we would not have any classes until January we were also sad because they were our last classes of RMS 21.

Emotionally, this past week has been a little crazy around HMI. Boxes are being packed and cabin decorations are being taken down. During our Super Clean on Monday, Karl told us that all remnants of RMS XXI will have to be removed. It feels strange that another group will be coming here, learning the same routines that we did and making new memories. But with the Full Circle ceremony fast approaching, we are coming to accept the fact that, yes, we do have to go home sometime. Monday night during our cabin meeting, we wrote a list of things we would miss about the RMS. At community meeting on Thursday in the yurt, Molly showed us the list she compiled from all the cabins. Though we will miss cook crews and having circle under the stars, we can always cook in the kitchen with our friends back home and lay out under the stars with our friends there too. We learned that we can recreate some of the experiences we've had here in Colorado back home.

RMS XXI signing off.

By: Dan Prior, Sam Davidson, Ben Coleman, and Sylvia Parol