WHISPER LIGHT BY SEMESTER 43

High Mountain Institute and Semester 43 presents

WHISPER LIGHT

LETTER FROM ZACK & JACK Dear Semester 43, Hi! We love you quite a lot - this last semester has been an incredible experience. Every student has characteristics that make them unique and an individual, and every person in “43” has brought something to the table. In putting together “WHISPER LIGHT,” we have attempted to showcase that individuality, though it obviously does not do the people in Semester 43 complete justice.

While the semester is coming to a close, we as a community, and the contents of “WHISPER LIGHT,” attempt to create a posthumous experience of our semester to remember our quirks, our best qualities, and what makes us amazing (we are amazing, right?).

Thank you for making this place as remarkable as it is: from your kombucha obsessions, to bizzare shopping habits, to late night dance parties, to cooks who could beat Gordan Ramsey, to jokes that suck, to jokes that don’t suck, to actually doing that poster for Erik’s class (I see you!), to backpacking in the woods for an extremely prolonged amount of time (like a lunatic), to becoming besties with your Spanish teacher, to finding an arch-nemesis in your English teacher, to chopping wood late at night to let out your daily frustrations, to living in a cabin that doesn’t exist, or one with a bunch of spirits and ghosts, to living far from home, to eating veggie pux, to crying in the woods, to sitting in the woods for, well, such an incredibly long time, to having frozen hair, and frozen fingers, to not setting cabins on fire, to living without parents, to living with your best friends, to making a killer fire, or a dead one too, to not doing your homework, to watching all four Hunger Games in forty-eight hours, to eating at Wild Bills (or trying to, those hours are weird, aren’t they?), to being remarkable, to being beautiful, to being ugly, to soaking it all in. love you all. zack + jack

Edited and Designed by Zack Hauptman and Jack Kemper

thank you semester 43. here are all of your names. benjamin burke

leela sridhar

tia hannah

brandon nesmith

leilani soriano

veerle sanborn

chace correll

lenny lorenz

winter haberle

charlotte maffie

lillian shattuck

zack hauptman

fiona rucker

lori cassidy

frayda lieber

lucas childers

galilea landa-posas

lucy chant

gus boden

lucy steiner

gwen field

mae browning

hannah grove

miro mcintyre-clere

hayden wilkins

montana azzolini

ian acheson

nathan curl

jack kemper

olivia robins

jack shambaugh

olivia bendich

james levinson

reva namboodiri

julia scott

rory patch

julia troilo

ryan sawyer

kali long

saya kim-suzuki

kendall bartel

sophia martinez

kenzie reigel

spencer wolf

lachlan mccallum

spencer billings

“I Come From�

I come from thinkers and knowers, shaped by fractured bones and broken dreams.

I come from a fallen past, following a cobblestone street to new beginnings.

I internalize the thought of not being enough.

From fractured eyes, no one ever sees.

I come from ruins of life nailed together.

Rusting memories buried in water; blurred from vision.

Sirens and horns bounce off of me, working to pave my place.

I come from rouge minds, set in a society of gray lights and factories.

Charged talkers and passive listeners, swinging cords of lightning in front of them.

MacKenzie Reigel

some jokes from HMI's

FACULTY

by saya kim-suzuki

AVERY “What’s worse than finding a worm in your apple?”

“Half a worm!”

BARRETT “Where does a polar bear keep its money?”

DYLAN

“In a snowbank”

“What’s the difference between mashed potatoes and pea soup?”

“Everyone can mash potatoes!”

SADIE “What did the fish say when it swam into a wall?”

“Dam.”

ART BY JULIA TROILO

ERIK “What do you call a dog that can do magic?”

“A labra-cadabrador” JACOB Says in a Minnesotan accent: “One day, Olie was doing some work in the yard.

And he’s mowing, trimming the leaves, and putting ‘em into piles, and all of a sudden - he sees Sven standing in the middle of the road. He sees him, just dragging this big ol’ chain down the road.

He’s just draggin’ it, and draggin’ it, making a big sound and sparks flying everywhere. And pretty soon, Olie yells, “SVEN! SVEN! Why you draggin’ that chain through the middle of the road!”

Sven replies, “Well, easier than pushin’ it!”

LUPE “One day, Leonardo DiCaprio, George Clooney, and Matthew McConaughey decided to make a movie. Leonardo DiCaprio said, ‘I’ll act,’ George Clooney said, ‘I’ll direct,’ and Matthew McConaughey said: ‘I’ll write, I’ll write, I’ll write!’”

TWO FROM DANNY “What do you say before you eat soup?”

“Miso hungry” “What do you say if someone tries to eat Indian food without bread?”

“Naansense” IZZY “Two whales walk into a bar, and one whale says to the other, AAHAAOOHUUuUuUU. AOooOO OOEEEUuEu.” “The other responds, ‘wow, you’re really drunk.’”

THREE FROM JEFF “What did the snail say when it was riding a turtle?”

“WEEEEE!” “How do you catch a unique rabbit?”

“U-nique up on it” “How do you catch a tame rabbit?”

“Tame way”

photos by gwen field

I was taught to love and trust too young; I was born with hope and a cage.

How can a child be stronger than her captors?

How can she be weaker than her bars?

I survive by hiding dreams between my stomach and sternum-fill my lungs with hope until I cough up sparkling rubies.

Stockholm syndrome is the truest friend I have: the only one that stays by my side when my immune system attacks my heart.

Maybe one day I'll decide what it means to be human, and then I"ll wish I never learned.

by julia scott

Dear Diane, Isn't it funny how things never go according to plan Like how not all dandelion seeds will take root But wasn’t it beautiful the way they rode the wind’s hand And landed so far away?

This August, My home was an alpine hillside, Where I often I sat in the cool evening grass To watch the stars go by, And thought about dandelion seeds

art by hayden wilkins

That never cultivated weeds And how I could be sitting On the graves of stars buried within the earth.

This might have been what you thought last spring, Diane, when I handed you fistfuls of my hair tied neatly in pink ribbons

And when I smiled as you traced your shaking fingers Along the burn areas where roots once grew Did you know then That my deforestation

Was a gift from God? And that fireweed And lodgepole saplings only break the surface Once the char has settled On the curves of my spine?

Oh Diane, who are we but the stories we tell ourselves?

I used to strengthen my hips To carry the weight of tales I had Adopted and lied to, Coddled into thinking that I was Their mother, Their birthplace.

I wanted a story I could control

by hann

And a narrative I could leash Because anyone who knows me Knows I’ve got a tiger in the city And that I can barely smother my own roar.

The desert made me question my stories.

Made my heart throb against canyon walls Like flash flood crescendo Because the sky was all too bright And the stories smelled like impending rain.

And II wasn’t okay anymore.

Wasn’t okay to drag the names and places

ah grov

e

The timelines that snagged on boulders The motifs that ensnared my wrists.

So I pecked at the stories until they shattered Like the staccato movements of a grey jay, And from the recycled shards, I can finally see the shape of my own face.

I’ve been practicing Walking over thresholds With a belly full of stories And a pocket full of dandelion seeds.

It’s beautiful the way I’m Riding the wind’s hand And landing so far away But what if I don’t take root?

And even if I do, What if the bouquets of Life lessons and love poems Wilt when I place them on your Windowsill?

I guess all that I’m trying to tell you, Diane, is that I catch myself smiling When the moon climbs through my window And nudges me awake.

So if you see my curtains ajar

Please don’t call me foolish.

Just whisper me a soft wind And don’t let go of my kite.

FROM AN EXPEDITIOn

by charlotte maffie

RYAN SAWYER’S EXPEDITION COOkBOOK

Alright friends, here’s the sitch. I wanted to submit something to the magazine, and didn’t really know what to write or do for it.

So then I decided to write up some exped recipes so you all can remember them when your away. Now, I know that people have different ways of making the same dish. And that’s ok. But this is how I would have made them in the backcountry, and by no means am I right, but this is just how I do it. So without further adieu, here is Ryan’s exped recipes for a full day. (also I chose to write this so everyone could remember my wordiness when it comes to things like, super sweet, alright friends, we’re doing it, etc. Also I’m writing in comic sans because it’s fun, and totally under represented.

A COOK IN HIS NATURAL HABITAT photo by lucy steiner

RECIPE NUMERO UNO Breakfast: cheesy bagels Things you will need: A good amount of cheese Some bagels (depends on appetite) A knife?

Then a fry bake Some pliers And an MSR whisperlite stove Lighter?

Ok, you are ready.

Step 1: set stove up. (you already know how to) Step 2: light stove. (don't burn yourself. Thats bad) Step 3: using some butter, spread it around the fry bake on top of the stove. (side note, the stove and fry bake are about to get HOT. so have caution! Also I forgot to include butter in the list. Make sure to have that too) Step 4: spit bagel in half, and put the flat inner side of the bagel down facing the fry bake.

Step 5: flip the bagel, whenever it feels right.

Step 6: flip it again. (it's now been buttered on both sides. Woah, crazy) Step 7: add cheese (not the whole block, that's a waste) it's helpful for this to be cut up before hand. Then sprinkle over both flat sides, try to cover it as much as possible.

Step 8: having the lid ready with the pliers(woah those actually have a use no way) pour a little bit of water into the fry bake then cover. Try not to touch the bagel with water. It would be soggy then. And thats sad. (also you will need water and a lid, forgot it again, im such a silly goose) Step 9: friends, we have approached a big fork(get it, we are cooking? I think that's funny) in the road. You can either continually steam your bagel and let the cheese melt, then consume, or flip the bagel now and crisp the cheese. Which do you decide? I decide flipping and crisping, it's fun and exciting!

Step 10: flip the bagel, and let it sizzle.

Step 11: whenever you think it's done, flip it over, then take out of fry bake.

Step 12: Enjoy!

RECIPE NUMERO DOS Lunch: whatever you can put together from the ration bags Things you will maybe use and need: Seed mix (everybody’s favorite) Granola Oatmeal?

M&M raisin pretzel mix (avoid pretzels) Dried fruit Tuna Leftovers?

You are prepared to make lunch.

Also you’re doing great! Stick with it, cooking is hard!

Step 1: mix all of the things that you would like together in your nalgene bowl.

Step 2: put lid on bowl and eat on trail! Make sure to stay fueled friends!

you're doing SUPER SWEET so far!

RECIPE NUMERO TRES (the final recipe! how sad)

Dinner: Pizza Things you will need: Flour Yeast Warm water Vegetables (onions, brussle sprouts, bell beppers) Red sauce powder Cheese Meat?

Pepperoni?

Ok so here's the sitch, pizza is hard. Like really hard.

Step 1: take your warm water and put it in a bowl. Yay. you did a thing.

Step 2: put yeast in bowl and sit for awhile until yeast falls.

Step 3: cut up things and prep sauce, specifically veggies, cheese, and meat.

Add water to the powder, and add spices too! Yum! Step 4: next pour yeast into bag of flour slowly. Slow is key here. Then knead it around, that would be good and helpful.

Step 5: split into equal sections depending on how many people you have, so if you have 3 people, make 3 balls of dough. Easy money.

Step 6: next, knead one of them out into a flat disk thing. Like a frisbee.

Or a plate. Whatever floats your boat, but as long as its flat that's what matters.

Step 7: put it on the fry bake, flip it, add ingredients, steam it, then take it off. (Im writing this the day its due FYI. isn't that fun?? We love that) Step 8: enjoy your pizza, you deserved it :) Post dinner treat thing: the PERFECT cup of tea What you will need Water (warm + cold) Earl grey tea A baby nalge Dehydrated milk Sugar Step 1: make milk. Pour a little bit of powder into your baby nalge, then add a little bit of water, the shake if you want froth and stuff.

Step 2: put tea bag in, and add hot water Step 3: let it steep!

Step 4: take tea bag out Step 5: add some sugar, depending on taste or whatever Step 6: Shake it up, then enjoy Yay! Hope you learned something!

THANK YOU LOVE YOU ALL KEEP ON COOKING

art by leela sridhar

poems by brandon nesmith also known as B$tackss

THE ORIGIN STORY by Gus Boden 0 - Backcountry Becky became lonely resting in the Void. Becky called out to the Void, “Hey God?” and He answered, “Yes, Becky?”

1 - And God called the light Day, and the darkness he calledNight. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

2 - And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

3 - And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

4 - And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years: And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

5 - And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creatures that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

6 - And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

7 - And on the seventh day, God rested, which is why we have Sacred Sunday. It is also why we put off Liz’s homework until 8:45 that night.

8 - And on the eighth day God created the yeast, so root beer and pizza could be made in peace and harmony.

9 - And on the ninth day, the yeast created the farmer, so someone could care for the world and cry when the calf dies.

10 - And on the tenth day, the farmer grew ChefJeff, so we could have a way to enjoy the fruits of their labor.

11 - And on the eleventh day, ChefJeff created the Hobart, because he needed something so perfect to rule the world alongside him.

12 - And on the twelfth day, the hobart birthed Spencer Wolf, because even the Hobart needed a wizard to help it and its mystic abilities 13 - And on the thirteenth day, Spencer Wolf found Monty Python and The Holy Grail while cleaning the hobart, and entertainment was born.

14 - And on the fourteenth day, Spencer Wolf took Monty Python and The Holy Grail, and he made the Meme, since he had already cleaned all the dishes.

15 - And on the fifteenth day, from the Meme, Humanity was born.

18 - And on the eighteenth day,Nathan broke the Chair and could not go on second exped.

32 - And on the thirty-second day, God was satisfied and He was confident in his experiment, so he left, which is why we have 32 days in each month, giving us precisely 420 days in the year.Nice.

Photo ofGus Boden, by Gus Boden

photos by KENDALL BARTEL

MOTION SICK an original song by olivia bendich

VERSE 1 I’m watching myself Watching my heart break And your gentle hands Softly touch my face Its a whispered dream - followed by the rain

You’re no longer 15 No longer 15 CHORUS* Just look at me - please Can’t you see how i feel It’s written on my knees Drenching these fucking tears And you make me

Im giving myself hope again Thinking this time it’ll be different So stupid and naive

Oh you make me Motion sick verse 2 And it’s not your fault

How you watch yourself want him And it’s beyond you both to keep on hiding I’ll be at the swings around 4 If you’re not confused anymore If you’re not afraid of the dark Then meet me there

These winding roads (x2) Don’t help Cause I still Can’t tell If its nausea or feelings Dizziness or dreaming mmm

Meet me there

Just look at me please

(CHORUS)*

(CHORUS)*

bridge

purchase your very own melanzana.

HMI students own too many to count.

photos by kendall bartel modelled by HMI students who thoroughly enjoy melenzanas and probably have more than one

THE CHANGING ROOM written during First expedition

I have to be undressed.

So I hide and wait for the private room to open.

My chest is too flat Foreigners through the screen door.

My feet, Yellow, dangling nails I keep forgetting to cut.

I put a swimsuit on And walk out.

My neck lunges up, Looking at them.

I’m cold now, bare Chested.

They can see my legs and my arms.

Grapevines made of hair Trickling down.

I have a speech to perform, written in pen on my hand, Though the ink comes off as I step into the bitter pool.

There’s a swirling of blue surrounding me.

I dunk my head into the water, so the riot of blue makes it into my eyes.

Nobody can see me now, or at least I can’t see them.

I can keep hiding, underwater, swimming in the dark, my mouth shut and my eyes diverted.

by zack hauptman

Now the pictures are white and gone Like me But I wanted to hear the bird chirp And instead I have found it Laying in the trail Feathers everywhere Quiet

SEMESTER SUPERLATIVES by frayda lieber and lillian shattuck

Olivia Robins - Most likely to fall in love with the sunset and run into prince charming Rory Patch - Most likely to invent the giardia vaccine Lillian Shattuck - Most likely to pee on her boyfriend Lucy Chant - Most likely to be the world’s worst of the worst super villains Lucy Steiner - Most likely to streak through a UNC basketball game Leela Sridhar - Most likely to morph into a crack squirrel Galilea Landa-Posas - most likely to be an undercover goddess Fiona Rucker - most likely to use a bassoon as a murder weapon Faith White - most likely to turn into a sim Juliette Moffroid - most likely to invent the thigh high clog

Miro McIntyre-Clere - Most likely to be a British criminal Kenzie Reigel - Most likely to steal a cow for her own personal milk source Chace Correll - Most likely to create “The Positive Affirmation Dance Studio” Leilani Soriano - Most likely to become a broadway agent Charlotte Maffie - Most likely to be reincarnated as lactose Reva Namboodiri - most likely to be an undercover school bully Hannah Grove - most likely to solve climate change Corey Rost - most likely to get arrested for storming a Patriot’s game Gwen Field - most likely to start a drama-filled reality series: “My Beloved Pirate” Lenny Lorenz - opens training camp for Jewish mothers Lori Cassidy - Most likely to be hospitalized for someone mistaking her laugh for a seizure Olivia Bendich - most likely to be found on an elevated surface Mae Browning - most likely to get drunk off kombucha

Veerle Sanborn - Most likely to make a cult out of long-haired boys Sophia Martinez - Most likely to birth a child already addicted to red bull Julia Troilo - Most likely to become the world’s best fire juggler Madi Standen - Most likely to save the sea turtles after mobilizing the metal straw movement Cat Haas - Most likely to quit her job and run away to find zen Frayda Lieber - Most likely to impeach Trump with her own bare hands Kali Long - Most likely to raise mandarin speaking lamas, all named Winston Saya Kim-Suzuki - Most likely to overthrow the Gordon Ramsey empire after winning Master Chef Julia Scott - Most likely to arrange a secret witch society that meets only on Tuesdays Kendall Bartel - Most likely to bring back leg warmers Montana Azzolini - Most likely to hold the world record for most concussions Tia Hannah - Most likely to become a world renowned plastic surgeon, specializing in ankle reduction Becky Fitzpatrick - Most likely to replace a groundhog in predicting the remaining duration of winter

Lucas Childers - Most likely to start an anti-soy protest Nathan Curl - Most likely to turn into a cartoon character James Levinson - Most likely to be the first male instagram influencer Ian Acheson - Most likely to commit treason for winning the Olympics for Canada Jack Kemper - Most likely to insure his hair for 6.8 billion dollars Brandon Nesmith - Most likely to be the first millionaire slam poet Gus Boden - Most likely to bring the no sideburns look to the south Nishchal Shresthal - Most likely to receive the best feedback giving award Hayden Wilkins - Most likely to fall into the game dungeons and dragons Benjamin Burke - Most likely to be Ansel Elgort’s body double Lachlan McCallum - Most likely to be a satanist Spencer Wolf - Most likely to create the backcountry hobart Spencer Billings - Most likely to publicize the fish pelvic press Zack Hauptman - Most likely to get a Spotify tattoo

Ryan Sawyer - Most likely to actually kill somebody with kindness Winter Haberle - Most likely to become a confused magician Mike Dunne - Most likely to turn into mullet

art by fiona rucker

Art by Jack Kemper

KOMBUCHA IS HMI SEMESTER 43’s DRINK OF CHOICE sold at leadville outdoors and city on a hill in LEADVILLE, CO. (but you already knew that, didn’t you...)

photo by kendall bartel

art by fiona rucker

by lucy chant

by lucy steiner

h

s fi t

ee

BY SPENCER WOLF

The SOUTH LAND WRITTEN BY THREE PROUD PROGRESSIVE SOUTHERNERS spencer billings Gus Boden Lachlan McCallum

FOREWORD Some call Alaska America’s final frontier. Let me be the first to tell you these people are fools. If you think the most frozen parts of that barren wasteland can compare in wildness to the south, it’s time for you my friend to drive through the bible belt. Come with us on a journey to a place where the Sweet Tea is sweeter than an Oompa Loompa’s piss. Come as we take to meet some of the kindest folks around, when they’re not discussing politics, guns, religion, and immigrants. Our food is, well, it’s divine, it contains some of God’s greatest gifts: butter, more butter, and food fried in butter. We pride ourselves in having enough fat in our food to replenish a third-world country. So y’all come have a seat on the porch, grab an iced drink, get some soul food (don’t forget the butter!) and prepare to avoid any hot topics of conversation. We southerners will take you on a cultural journey through our home states, and why we believe the south is the superior (and oftentimes the most flawed) region in these great United States. Ye!!!

Spencer is from...

Virginia

Ol, Virginia. Few places are prettier than the original permanent colony. A drive across the commonwealth will bring you from some of the most beautiful mountains in the Appalachians to the Chesapeake. A drive across the state might also bring on severe culture shock for the underprepared.

Driving through appalachia you might find yourself looking at a disgustingly high amount of confederate flags and the most beautiful scenery then suddenly in the beautiful, hipster-full, college town of Charlottesville. I remember the day I heard about the atrocities committed by the alt-right in Charlottesville. It was near impossible for me to comprehend how it could of happened in a place I had been so many time to enjoy a Mellow Mushroom pizza or stop in before a hike to Sugar Hollow. These people had taken the name of a place I held very dear and turned it into something darker and more sinister. It still hurts me deeply every time I see a clip from the incident.

Whiled I’d like to say this is a feeling I’d never felt this way about the state I call home, I can’t. For the majority of my life I resented my home. It’s hard to grow up on progressive ideals and to not resent a place that, at least to some extent, still holds its history as the Capital of the Confederacy as sacred.

In heart of Richmond lies the Fan District. The Fan is a neighborhood full of beautiful old townhouses, restaurants, museums, and local shops. But the arguably most beautiful street within the Fan, Monument Ave, carries its own scars. Monument features five confederate monuments and one of local born afracian american tennis star Arthur Ashe. Most of my life as a more or less fully functioning human these monuments have been the topic of heated discussion between myself and friends. Some of us, myself included, believe there a better people to honor on that street then what are at their core traitors to our country and that the current statues should be moved to museums, while others see them as too important to the history of our state to move. Richmond as a whole is a very complicated city, with a whole host of positives and negatives. Twisted up with it’s dark past is its current state as a hipster mecca. Local shops and restaurants are popping up all over the city for everything from the geeks, to the fitness buffs, to the outdoor enthusiasts. This hipster culture has begun to overlap with many parts of the city,

especially the old money.

Since kindergarten, I've been surrounded by old money. Going to Collegiate the vast majority of my peers come from a completely different economic class than myself. Many of whom identify as deeply conservative. It’s a strange thing watching the kids you’ve known for so long start to make jokes about things that probably should not be joked about. They’re people that on one hand you don’t wanna mingle with, but it’s not, and it can’t be just so black and white. Knowing them for so long you see them at their best and at their worst and it's hard to separate the two. It makes hurt all the more when they start to resent you for your beliefs. In the 7th grade when people realized I was a progressive someone told me they’d “lost all respect for me'' I wish I could say I didn't care but I did. It hurt, it hurt a lot. I known this kid for years even considered him a friend to some extent, so of course that kind of thing hurt. I’ve had my ups and downs with my classmates over the years as a whole. Sometimes I’m hopeless and other times just maybe it feels like they maybe learning. It’s a constant battle. How do I not hate someone who themself spreads hate? Of all the wonderful and terrible things about living in the south it’s the people that constantly keep my head spinning. Southerners can be as kind as they are hateful, welcoming as they are fearful. If the south has taught me anything in life, it's how to find the good in something. How to see through the black and white to the person underneath and refuse to give up on them. Yes, the South has a long, long way to go. But, that doesn't mean you should discount it just yet.

Lachlan is from...

North Carolinia

When one thinks of North Carolina, the first thought is “Oh. Another one of these lazy country bumpkin conservatives from the south.� Of course, this grave stereotype is hurtful to me, a progressive southerner. Albeit, our policies and politics, historically, have put down women and minorities, there is a strong rising culture of progressivism in North Carolina. Our state is a center for a booming economy, with Research Triangle Park. Many large tech companies have come to RTP, including Cisco, IBM, Red Hat, and, North Carolina born, Epic Games. This brings new people to the area, and thus new ideals.

Most importantly, however, North Carolina is a natural beauty. A mixture of ocean, plains, and the gorgeous Appalachian mountains gives North Carolina a diverse beauty unseen in many other states. The Atlantic ocean, along with the Outer Banks and Roanoke Island - the first English Colony, founded by Sir Walter Raleigh - makes a unique eastern section of the state. Swamps litter the east and movies, such as the extremely sad The Notebook, have been filmed there. Moving more central, the Piedmont dominates, containing deciduous forests and farmlands. Finally, the mountains. Appalachia dominates the west of NC. Many national and state forests, including Pisgah National and Dupont, bring many hikers to the region. The Appalachian Trail also runs through the state. The Hunger Games was actually filmed in Dupont. Along with the AT, the Mountain to Sea Trail runs from the west to east of NC, where one can through-hike or hike, bike, and paddle the length of the state.

North Carolina is a menagerie of the natural world and progressive southern ideals, with the classic stubbornness. Overall, while the state has a bad reputation for policies that the past generations made, North Carolinians have started becoming more and more progressive.

Gus is from...

Kentucky

Like Stephen Foster says, “The sun shines bright on my old Kentucky home”.

My home commonwealth is one of splendor and wonder. A drive across the bluegrass-coated farmlands with the plethora of horses is always a true beauty in the springtime. While many people love to poke fun towards my home, only by experiencing the Kentucky life will one truly understand why it is such a special place. I would like to start with the image of Spring, we Kentuckians believe that Spring is the first season of the year, largely due to the fact that Winter is not well liked among us sun-lovin’ southerners. Spring is when the diverse flora of Kentucky comes to a beautiful ascension. The Magnolias have sprouted their beautiful, sweet-smellin’ flowers, making the entire land reminisce of an incredible aroma. The dogwoods, and honeysuckles add to the amazing smells that dominate the Kentucky Spring. Spring is also Derby season. While the world is coated in vibrant colors, we put on even more crazy colors and hit the track for days of horseracing fun. Coming from a family where the horse racing business is prominent, I have always been fascinated by the industry that surrounds it and the build up to the Derby makes it even more interesting. We start celebrating the Derby nearly two weeks prior to the race, and we do it in the most Southern way imaginable: with a ginormous airshow topped off with a massive firework show. Thunder Over Louisville, the name of this event, is the spark that sets the flame for this two week festival. Over this time you will encounter free concerts on the riverfront, hot air balloon races, marathons, and a buttload of southern food. You finish it all off by donning your most preppy outfits and taking the TARC to Churchill Downs, where you proceed to lose your money while swearing “I know how to win these races”. This is also a time where you see the best come out of Kentuckians. I am sure that there are many unfair notions relating to my commonwealth and the other southern states, and while some of those may be true, it is still an incredible state that has so much to offer. We value “Southern Hospitality” to our utmost standards, that is something I have been raised on and something I will teach onto others. It is something you see carried by many citizens, if you aren’t saying sir and mam then you’re not doing it right! Looking back upon my upbringing, I am very thankful to have been raised in a fashion of this manner, where I can look back with confidence that I have the tools in order to be a respectful, sweet southern boy.

One primary aspect of the Kentucky culture is our food! We LOVE to eat below the Mason-Dixon line, and we love to go all out when it comes to good soul food. Kentucky is known for being the birthplace of fried chicken, and we take it to heart to ensure that we have the very best fried chicken. Fried chicken comes in many different forms, from many different backgrounds. You can partake in the classic style in a

lovely rural Southern town, where the grease flows like the river Jordan from each bite and will leave you beyond satisfied, or you can venture into Louisville’s vast arsenal of fusion restaurants, spicy, Asian, sweet, you name it! I personally have found a deep love for the spicy chicken scene that surrounds my hometown. Whether in the hip area of Nulu, dining at Royal’s, or simply gouging down on Joella’s in Saint Matthews, I can promise that you will fall in love with our incredible food. Aside from our staple, we have many other options sure to make your mouth water. One of my favorite Kentucky delicacies is Benedictine. Benedictine is a combination of cucumber, dill and cream cheese to make this heavenly spread. It is incredible on a BLT or just shared over crackers. Benedictine is a very isolated food, it is rarely seen outside the commonwealth, but in our territory it is heralded as one of our best creations, aside from bourbon obviously.

the southerners, with hannah (who lives in denver)

WHO WOULD WIN IN A FIGHT? As Sophia and Kenzie prepare for a potential fight, HMI students decide who they think will win.

A POEM by CHARLOTTE MAFFIE It starts with the trees that stretch to the sky They stand around me as I sit in the forest, Reaching, their branches filled with grey jays Dancing around me waiting for food.

It continues with the grasshoppers that crossed My path for the first month I was here, their creaking chirp fills my mind, even though they are gone.

In the Sawatch the trees are endless, so is the sky Only broken by the mountains. The stars, Oh the endless stars, they light up the night.

ART by MONTANA AZZOLINI

photo by olivia robins

photo by gwen field

by Leela Sridhar and her friends from home

photos by lucy chant

BY LORI CASSIDY

Dear Home, I would love to say: “I am excited to see you.”

I would love to cry happy tears when I see my family.

To come home to welcome notes, Flowers, energetic little brothers.

Home, I would love stepping off the plane at the Philadelphia Airport to feel right. To have the thick air fill my lungs and make me feel super-human.

One of my favorite poems tells me: “Great books are made of little chapters.”

How then, do I end a chapter when I am not ready?

How do I pack my memories into bags, and hope I remember to open them again?

I hold a scalpel, dissecting the answers, but my hands come up empty.

I’ve looked for the answers under the pine needles that scatter the ground, above the sparkling aspen treetops, and in the ends of never-ending canyons.

The fairytale homecoming won’t come true.

I came here, to Colorado, to fall in love again.

To remember mountains’ outstretched arms, vanilla perfumed trees, and Utah night skies.

I can say home, that I did it! I fell in love.

I’ve spent time my feet planted on the rocks, roots, dirt, and logs of Colorado. I climbed a mountain never thought possible and it felt right.

At the top of the tallest mountain in Colorado, I left a rock. It’s for Mom. The one who’s art decorates your life and mine.

BY LENNY LORENZ

Dear Home, the rock is there on that mountain for you, for me, and for everyone who needs it.

And it makes me want to be here more.

I want to discover the roots of this place.

What holds the ground together?

No matter how many times the world tries to swallow us.

I want to know how many stars I see in the sky.

The twinkling blanket I slept under every night, I don’t want to lose that.

Pack the stars into your backpack and bring them with you. Home, I want them.

I want to capture the essence of ponderosa pine.

Wake before it gets hot, waste hours and days smelling trees.

Home, I am trying to imagine our life together.

But the picture is blurred by friendships made and places found.

I’ve been singing, Home.

Singing for no one but me, to no one but me.

Nights under Utah skies bring back the tunes of Desert Silvery Blues and Cottonwoods.

The songs sit around a campfire in the bottom of a water-filled canyon that I’ve never been to. Other songs join them.

Taylor Swift, One Voice, and Imagine.

They come from me. From all the places I know.

They reach long strings around the world tangling into webs, then back to my ready hands.

I don’t want my web to get caught in the city skyscrapers and crowded streets.

I want it to be free here.

To feel like I am wild again.

I don’t want to be pulled back. At least not yet.

Sitting by the front door in a house we no longer share, are mom’s rose petals.

They cover a pink board, encased in glass.

So they may never rot.

The people here, they’re different than the rest.

They chose to run around outside for 18 days at a time.

To dance in the rain knowing we are all watching.

That makes us different.

Maybe the roots are us.

We hold each other up to keep the ground from giving out.

Maybe, I will never know the roots until it’s too late.

I’m not ready to go.

My stars aren’t packed, my memories not preserved, friendships not guaranteed.

Home, I would love to say: “I’m excited to see you”.

I long to tell you: “I have the answers” I wish I could tell you why chapters end and storybooks close their dainty pages before we are ready.

But I feel right here, And I don’t think I’m ready for you yet.

ѕυм нaιĸυѕ вy wιnтer gus hαs sσ much chєєsє whєrє thє hєck ís mч dαng chєєsє? σff вrαnd вrσccσlí sσup plαtєs αrє fσr lσsєrs í nєєd wαч mσrє fσσd thєn thαt ít’s sαlαd вσwl tímє dínnєr rєαdч чєt? wαtєr ísn’t вσílíng díd чσu shαkє thє stσvє? wσw pσσp jαíl αgαín plєαsє вlαmє thє gíαrdíα αquαmírα fαílєd σh nσ pєαrlч whítєs sír mαstєr gαmє mαstєr sír í sαw lσts σf tєєth

ís thєrє tímє tσ αquα σnє twσ thrєє fσur fívє síх sєv… hσw mαnч drσps wαs thαt? díd wє stσrm prσσf wєll? stαkєs αrє dσwn вurrítσs rσllєd mч mídd ís flчíng

Art by Jack Kemper

my old kentucky home The sun shines bright in My Old Kentucky home, ‘Tis summer, the children are gay; The corn-top’s ripe and the meadow’s in the bloom While the birds make music all the day.

The young folks roll on the little cabin floor All merry, all happy and bright; By ‘n’ by hard times comes a knocking at the door Then My Old Kentucky Home, good night!

Weep no more my lady Oh! weep no more today!

We will sing one song For My Old Kentucky Home For My Old Kentucky Home, far away.

for people who want to look like they go camping but actually have no responsibilities at all

photos by kendall bartel and lucy steiner

organized by galilea landa-posas

our dogs are the best

AMX at HMI

by Ian Acheson Type 2 fun is a classic HMI saying, describing the type of “fun” that is not fun in the moment, but fun afterwards looking back. In the HMI experience, the pinnacle of type 2 fun is AMX (morning the “Fun Run” ahead, we

Jack Kemper shows off his mismatching gloves in classic Jack fashion.

ventured out into the dark to try and survive and become better. The accompanying photos come from a two mile check in where everyone is timed and told to do their best.

While the intention is a serious run, Semester 43 goes above simply running and fully captures the joy of being outside, even if it’s forced. Additionally, the photos show a time where expectations were met and raised, as many come from the second time trial in which every healthy person running improved over their first two mile time. In the activity, all of Semester 43 once again showed the strength no one thought they had, including themselves.

Brandon Nesmith finishing the run strong on the HMI driveway with Mount Massive behind.

Julia Scott pictured with both Mount Massive and Mount Elbert behind.

Leilani Soriano, Chace Correll, and Sophia Martinez walk together as part of a 4 legged race.

with Lori Cassid

and Spencer Billings e ping for joy whil Gwen Field jum .

Charlotte Maffie d n a , ve ro G h a y, Hann

SCEIENSE!

SIENCE!

Photos by Jack Kemper

DRAWINGS by MONTANA AZZOLINI

Photos by Nishchal Shrestha

THE CONTROVERSY SURROUNDING SOY Op-Ed by Lucas Childers

(the healthiest man alive) There is a massive controversy surrounding soy in this day and age. We have people being called betas or soy boys for consuming soy, and we have people being called out for raising their risk of prostate cancer if they don’t consume soy. First of all, we must answer these questions if we wish to move forward with a better understanding of this mysterious plant we call soy. Is soy bad for men? What are the problems/misconceptions that come with soy?

I remember the first time I heard about soy being problematic for boys and men. I was chillin’ with my brother at my grandparents’ house and my grandma had put out a plate of edamame. As I reluctantly munched on the sustenance, my brother looked at me and said, “Bro I’d take it easy with that stuff, it lowers testosterone and raises estrogen levels in men, so I wouldn’t eat it too much if I were you.” From that point on me along with my brother sustained from soy as much as possible.

We were made fun of by our parents, friends, etc. Now that we’re done with my anecdote let’s get into the science behind soy.

This is where things get difficult and a little biased. There have been studies that show that soy raises estrogen levels in men, however there have also been studies that show that soy does not raise estrogen levels in men nor affecting testosterone levels. All this being said, I believe that it is not worth it right now in my life to consume soy. Sure I’ll have some soy sauce on a rare occasion when I’m having sushi or something. Now let’s get into some soy norms.

The first is that soy is found in an insane amount of products today. Allegedly all processed foods contain some sort of soy. I encourage you to check the ingredients of your energy bar or your sour patch kids and you’ll see that I’m not lying. This is so bad that me and my brother are now forced to buy “RX Bars.” These bars are insanely nasty. They are literally, egg whites, nuts, and some sort of fruit all blended together with no added anything. However they might be the only bar out there that doesn’t contain soy. The reason soy is such a common commodity today is because of the pure cheapness of it.

It is cheap, easy, and reliable to grow and it is a source of protein. Just a dangerous one.

Now let’s get into the farming and growing of this so called nutritious food.

Soy is mainly grown in South America on “soy farms.” Now the way that it’s grown and the process that is required to make these farms is where it gets real controversial.

To make room for soy farms, big soy companies cut down large amounts of forests in South America. This is due to the fact that soy is such a commodity today. It is said that soy production is one of the biggest reasons for deforestation in South America, specifically in Brazil’s Cerrado region. Furthermore, it is worth mentioning that in the process of soy farming, many animals are killed. To make room for farms and to grow the actual soybeans, animals such as worms, snakes, squirrels, rabbits, etc, living on the ground or in holes are killed in the process of farming. This happens on farms other than that of soy, however it seems hypocritical that the people that won’t eat animals are causing the deaths of many nonetheless.

There are conflicting ideas on weather soy has negative effects on men due to opposing studies. However it is apparently clear that through the process of growing soy, there are negative effects on the environment. Soy is found everywhere in this day and age. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, however if people become more educated on the topic of soy, our culture would feel more confident in either consuming soy or not consuming soy. Like I said before at this stage in my life I can’t see myself consuming soy if I have the choice.

Lastly, don't take this article too seriously - it's only meant to spark thought and to give some context to my abstinence from soy.

Photos by Jack Kemper

BY SPE NC ER W OL F

BY SPE NC ER W OL F

CABIN 1 Cabin 1 CABIN 1 CABIN 1 CABIN 2 Cabin 2 CABIN 2 CABIN 2 CABIN 3 Cabin 3 CABIN 3 CABIN 3

CABIN 4 Cabin 4 CABIN 4 CABIN 4 CABIN 6 Cabin 6 CABIN 6 CABIN 6 CABIN 7 Cabin 7 CABIN 7 CABIN 7

Art by Jack Kemper

The Hay

by Nathan Curl

It’s time to hit the hay But what is this hay?

If it showed you the way To make someone’s day Would you say Yay or nay?

Hurray! You responded yay.

So what does it take to Make someone’s day?

A simle, a laugh, An action figure made from clay.

So as we run away From Gray Jay Way Remember Always say yay, Make someone’s day, And hit the hay.

To my dismay, Some of you may Have chosen nay.

That’s okay As long as you’re ready To embrace decay and dismay For the rest of your days.

THANK YOU SEMESTER 43