FROM OUR SENIOR PREFECTS JESS CHURCH AND MACCA GARLICK
It is fair to say that this year has been strange for everyone. School life in general has felt very different this year. One of the biggest shocks was walking into the Dining Hall for the first time to see the tables divided by Perspex screens. Gone are the days where you actually have a conversation during meals. Another loss for many people was not playing their last rugby, hockey or netball seasons. Such a large part of Cranleigh life was taken away from us. Cranleigh prides itself on always offering its students more than the average school. Although when A Levels and GCSEs were cancelled there may have been a sigh of relief from the Upper Fifth and Upper Sixth, little did they know that instead of one set of exams in the summer Cranleigh would be kind enough to give us an extra bonus one … how kind of them. But although certain pupils were not very happy with this, when half the School was sent home during our first set of exams, I think we all reluctantly agreed that it ended up being a good idea. Overall, we have missed a quarter of our school year, and obviously some people spent even less time in School due to isolation. Unfortunately, we have had yet another nationwide lockdown this year. We expected we would be in School for the full academic year, but that was not the case. Luckily, lockdown gave us all ample time to hone into the important things in life. Whether that be starting meditation or taking up a sport, we have had the opportunity to better ourselves. This year hasn’t been easy, but we have got through it with the help of our impeccable leadership team here at Cranleigh. Whilst trying to write this, we were brainstorming what has actually happened this year, and we have reached the conclusion that literally nothing has happened. We could talk about the might of Cranleigh on the sports pitches, but that was cancelled this year. We could talk about the wealth of music we have been gifted with, from Cranleigh lives to Helen Wareham Competitions, but apart from the online concerts all have been cancelled. So what actually has happened? Truthfully, we have been out of School a lot, and although this hasn’t been what we would have chosen, it has taught us the value of face-to-face contact, not only within our friendships but also in wider school life. We have all been very lucky to have had the facilities and teaching during lockdown that many other people have not had. But more than that, it has made us appreciate the little things. The connections we have with those around us have become ever more apparent. The relationships formed within the houses at Cranleigh are the things we will miss now that we are leaving. What we thought were the mundane parts of school life a year ago have become something we cherish and have really missed now that they have not happened.
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