Lso lancerspirit june 2018

The

Lancer Spirit

lancerspiritonline.com · Volume 41 · Edition 6 · June 2018

“Art has always been a part of me. I live it. It’s something that reflects who I am and how I feel on the world today.”

w y a e w go a

-Senior Joe Sullivan

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d n A

Artwork by senior Joe Sullivan, who is the 2018 Congressional Art Competition Award winner from District 1 in N.H. Read why “Art is for everyone” on pages 12-13.

6-7 8-9 10-11 12-13 14

Opinions

Don’t Get Bitten by the Snake Dear Teachers...

Pass on PDA Why Art is for everyone Prevent Plastic Polution

Creative Writing

15-17 Poetry 18-19 Short story “Jumped”

Check out more content on LSO at

www.lancerspiritonline.com

lancerspiritonline.com June 2018

FEATURES

A&E

CREATIVE WRITING

OPINION

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CONTENTS

Features

20-21 Señora Bartlett shows the Spanish world to students one class, one trip at a time 22-23 Die welt (the world) through the eyes of foreign exchange student Leonie Wittig 24-25 Sampson rebooted 26-27 From floor to beam, Croteau leads a balanced life 28-29 Jeff Cieslikowski: A Lancer Forever 30-31 Are Test Scores Important 32-33 Carleigh McRitchie’s musical journey

A&E

34 On This Island Review 35 Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino- Artic Monkeys Shawn Mendes - Shawn Mendes

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Letter from the editor Dear Lancer Nation,

We’re almost there everyone.

We’re in the midst of crunch time as we’re studying for finals and tying up loose ends. With each passing day, the golden sunlight glittering through the classroom window becomes all the more tempting. We look into that light and we long for beaches and sleeping on grassy hills.

Summer relaxation sounds great right now with end of the year pressures biting at our heels, but remember, although it's hard to believe, summer can become long and boring if you don’t know how to spend it.

Summer can be a very productive time for getting things done that you don’t have time for during the school year.

If you don’t have a summer job try volunteering.

Volunteering could teach you some new skills and looks great on any application. Summers also a great time for picking up new skills.

If you’ve always wanted to learn wood carving now's the time to do it, you have a whole two months to acquainted with the trade. You could also get ahead on searching for colleges and go on college tours.

You just don’t want be a hermit until next fall. Have a great summer.

Sincerely, Madison Martin Editor-in-Chief

Staff Madison Martin Editor in Chief Elizabeth Iaconis Online Chief Zach Ford Magazine Chief Cam Taranto Features Morgan Torre Features Rachel Cook Lifestyle Reporters Abi Whitcomb Opinions Alp Okyar Art Allie Marsh Sports Nick Desrosiers Sports Sean Cavanaugh News Lily Lefevre Arts & Entertainment Mrs. DeWinkeleer

Adviser

reporters Hannah Alback Ashley Arrigo Darrian Barker Kait Bedell Erin Carlson Brooke Carrier Caitlin Cassidy Grace Chicko Dylan Clivio Jazz Conde Carter Crowley Lauren Doherty Anna Drabik Kate Ehl Olivia Galluzzo Kara Gil Tim Gore Chris Gozza Sienna Graczyk Clare Grant Mercedes Greeley Lilly Grodt Juliana Hamel Kathryn Hempfield Rhea Hernandez Layna Holk Victoria Holmes

Erin Kelly Michael Kennedy Tim Kenney Drew Lambert Kate Lind Kathryn Maheras Liz Malone Alex McIntosh Marissa McKay Blake Melnik Josh Morin Alyssa Neal Amy Overhulser Abhy Patel Ellie Patterson Kat Provost Madison Rearick Delaney Root Josh Ryan Brendan Schabhetl Nicole Sarno Mason Smith Jill Spencer Rachel St. Louis Shane White Tyler Wilbur Adam Wilkinson

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Friends of the Lancer Spirit Platinum Jack and Sheila Howley Silver Uncle Bill Atkinson Mr. and Mrs. Lukas

Gold

The Soucy Family

The Mee Family Martin Family Mary and Evan Sohm

Bronze

Mauree Hutchins Suzanne Hjelm Kristin Radford The Justers The Wenger Family

If you would like to become a Friend of the Lancer Spirit, please email Mrs. DeWinkeleer at mdewinkeleer@londonderry.org or see her in room 411.

Mission Statement The Lancer Spirit is the news publication of Londonderry High School, which includes both a news magazine and a website.

The staff of student journalists strive to accurately and ethically report events and topics that are relevant and interesting to the LHS community.

Editorial Policy Readers are encouraged to express comments and opinions about content or other relevant topics.

Leave a comment beneath stories on lancerspiritonline.com or write a Letter to the Editor.

Letters can be sent to

mdewinkeleer@londonderry.org

or simply use the “Contact Us” tab on LSO.

To See the full editorial policy visit lancerspiritonline.com and click the “Editorial Policy” tab.

June 2018

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Distribution Process:

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The Lancer Spirit is distributed to 1,600 students, 220 staff members and the Londonderry community at no cost to them.

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Editorials represent the opinion of The Lancer Spirit editorial board.

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It’s so easy to stay informed!

Art by Rhea Hernandez

In the twilight.

Awaken beyond a linear, binary life.

“A forest at twilight is both a place full of life and a place that feels as empty as an office park after dark.”

I heard the above metaphor in a recent podcast I listened to. I was sitting in the shower, pondering as the water rushed over me. Like a cadance, the words “office park after dark” drummed in my head. “Office park after dark…Office park after dark…

Office park after dark…”

We all want everything to be clear.

Everything must be “Yes” or “no,” never “maybe.” “Black” or “white” never “gray.”

“Democrat” or “Republican,” rarely “moderate.”

We live our lives expecting there to be only two lanes that everything can be on.

But sometimes, life throws you in the middle of the woods, with no path to bring you home.

Life never has been and never will be as binary as we think it is. Sure, that is a daunting thought because the overwhelmingness of all the possible possibilities of how your life could turn out

slowly creeps over you.

We think our lives are this completely linear line, where we are born, go to elementary, middle school, high school, college, get a job, marry, have kids, etc. until you die.

Really, life isn’t this straight track that we are placed on at birth. Life is a crazy, swerving rollercoaster at Six Flags that sometimes has slow inclines and 10,000foot drops.

The sooner we realize that life is more like a country drive than gridded city streets, the sooner we come to the conclusion that maybe some things happen for a reason. We may not know that reason the second it’s thrown at us, but know someday that you will understand it.

We need to take a walk, LHS. Wander into the wooded back yard, out of the stressful office cubicle that you have been stressing about all day. Sit on a log and watch the sun set.

A forest at twilight. Full of life. Empty as an office park.

lancerspiritonline.com

IN IO N

n’t ge

t bitt

Students of LHS, beware, there’s a vicious snake roaming the halls of this school.

It could be anywhere, in the bathrooms, in the cafe, or even inside of the classrooms. This snake is hungry, and it’s on the hunt for rumors, lies, and backstabbing “friends.”

This snake’s name? Drama.

The more you feed the snake, the bigger it will get.

In fact, the more rumors that are spread and more lies that are told, the stronger the snake will become. And thus, the more harmful its venom will be.

This venom is not fatal, but it is worthy of doing plenty of damage. It will poison a person, yet only on the inside.

However, from the outside, you could take one quick glance at a person and never realize they have this poisonous venom racing throughout their veins. This liquid pain will hit where it really hurts, it will hit in the place where you feel all of your emotions, whether it be the heart or the brain.

The venom’s poison contains all of the rumors, lies, and nasty comments and spreads them throughout every inch of the body, making sure the person feels it all over.

This venom can cause feelings of melancholy, worthlessness, and rage— sometimes all at once.

e h t y

en

Do Kara Gil REPORTER

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OP

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In most cases, this snake will bite completely unexpectedly. It can slither out of nowhere, and sneak up right behind a person. If powerful enough, this snake is capable of causing friendships, family relationships, and sometimes even our sense of privacy and security to completely crumble right before us.

There is only one remedy that can truly cure the snake’s poison.This cure is available to everyone, however, only few are actually able to achieve proper use of it.

One might ask what exactly this cure is, and I can tell you that it is quite simply being able to recognize your self worth.

Sometimes, we believe that the best way to make rumors and lies disappear is to convince ourselves that what other people may or may not think about us is true. We change ourselves and distort our personalities to satisfy the opinions of others. We, the people of our generation, try to fit in as much as we possibly can.

There will soon come a time when

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we all are able to achieve a certain confidence in ourselves, and ask, is this really the best way for us to solve our problems? Is it no worth losing who we really are as Drama ve individuals over a rumor or a lie?

Each and every single one of us is beautiful in our own way. Our personalities, the way we look, the way we dress—it’s all beautiful, no matter what anyone else says.

It is important for us to realize that we cannot let the words of others tear us apart. And it is important for us to realize that we live in a world today where we are able to express who we really are or who we want to be, so why are we just throwing that opportunity away?

We need to stop trying to be the image that everyone else around us wants to see, and instead, we need to just let it go and be ourselves. We need to learn how to not care about the negative opinions of those that are insensitive, and we need to learn that we are all worth so much more than what society, or even ourselves, have lead us to believe.

In turn, once we have all realized our worth, then rumors and lies will have no power over how we live our lives.

And that is when the snake will truly be defeated.

Artwork by Victoria Holmes

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OPINION

A few thoughts on what students appreciate seeing in their teachers.

Kathryn Maheras REPORTER

Though it may not always seem like it, us students are here to learn from you. Sometimes we may be off in our own world, focused on what transpires outside of the classroom, or maybe we’re not focused in class because we’re just not too interested in the latest topic we’re learning.

The truth is, whether we’re taking your class because we are pursuing a career in that subject or taking it because we need the credit, we are here to learn from you and expand on whatever prior knowledge we have.

In order for us to effectively learn, we need teachers that will effectively teach. We need teachers who will push us to do our best and appreciate the effort we put into our work.

We need teachers who are understanding, approachable, and who make a good learning environment in their classroom.

A good teacher is someone who challenges their students, but knows when to ease up.

They’re not afraid to push us during class to raise our hands for the more difficult questions, and they assign projects that make us think outside of the box.

It’s understandable that it can be tough to gauge where every students is at. One student may think their A level Algebra class is the most difficult class they’ve taken, while another student may be getting one hundreds on every assignment.

But that’s why we have leveled classes. That student who’s struggling may have to consider moving down to a B level class while that student who’s excelling would fit better in an honors class.

It’s our job as students to decide what classes we can handle. All we ask is that our teachers teach the classes we signed up for. Don’t teach an A level class like an honors class or an honors class like a B level class.

Though we choose what classes we think we can handle, there always comes a time when

June 2018

we need help with a certain subject. Maybe we didn’t understand the latest math lesson or we have no idea how to start our thesis paper.

That’s when we decide to go to our teachers for help.

A good teacher is someone who is available to help when a student is struggling and is approachable enough for that student to ask for help. I’m sure not all us students are the most approachable people, but high school can be difficult. If we feel that a teacher is approachable, we’ll be more comfortable asking for help.

Having an approachable teacher allows for students to make mistakes, and after all, our mistakes are what we learn from.

Students don’t fear thinking outside of the box if they know their teacher will be happier with the process they went through instead of only the final outcome.

A good teacher is someone who brings new ways of learning into their class. They don’t give the same lectures every day and they don’t constantly hand out the same worksheets for independent work. They’re able to incorporate all kinds of learning into their class so that it appeals to everyone’s learning styles.

They do a few group projects for students who learn best from other students, and they do individual projects for students who don’t.

They’ll show detailed Power Points for the visual learners, and they’ll lead thoughtful discussions for the auditory learners.

Some teachers may have a set teaching style that they’ve done for years, but us students are constantly learning, so is it too much to ask that teachers do a little learning too? I know most of you teachers attend workshops and take classes, so don’t forget to include some of what you learned in your lessons for our classes.

In trying to incorporate all of these learning styles, there should be no time for the studentloathed pastime of “busy work.” These are

the kinds of assignments that us students find impossible to learn from. They’re those worthless worksheets that only serve to use up class time.

When busy work is given often, it can make us dread going to class. If we know that all we’re doing is another boring worksheet, then we won’t be too excited to go to class. We’ll just sit through the class, complete the worksheet, and leave without absorbing any knowledge. If we’re not engaging ourselves in the class, it can be really difficult to remember what we go over in class.

And of course we have to talk about homework. To an extent, homework can be really helpful. Sometimes if I’m not fully understanding a topic in class, I can go home, do the homework, and come better prepared for class the next day.

There are times, however, when the homework we’re given is just unnecessary.

Much like busy work, this kind of homework is given just for the sake of having us students do work.

Especially when we have after school activities and hours more of homework to do from other classes, this kind of homework just adds more stress to our already busy schedule.

We have enough real homework already, so we don’t need additional worksheets that we won’t learn anything from anyway.

Sometimes it may seem that the question of “who is your favorite teacher?” is synonymous with “who gives the least amount of homework?” Or maybe it’s a question of whose personality you like best.

In the end, however, these things aren’t the most important aspects of being a great teacher.

Though stories and jokes are a nice added bonus, all we are really looking for is someone to help us expand our learning in an impactful and positive way.

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Voices in the Hall:

What qualities do YOU think a teacher should have?

“A good teacher likes their job. You can tell they enjoy what they do.”

-Senior Varun Sadhir

Photo by Erin Carlson

“I think liking a teacher relates to liking the class because if you like how they teach, you’ll try more in the class and understand the subject better.”

-Sophomore Maura Buckley

Photo by Kathryn Maheras

“I try harder when my teachers are nice because I want to make them proud.”

-Junior Justin Cassidy

Photo by Erin Carlson

“I think it’s good when a teacher is nice, but they also push you to do your best. They’re challenging but not too challenging.”

-Sophomore Owen Rouse

Photo by Erin Carlson

“I learn better when we’re constantly reviewing. Like in Spanish class when the teacher holds up cards with the vocab words on it and we all have to say what it means. Doing that often really helps.”

The above information was gathered from the recent poll on lancerspiritonline.com

-Freshman Amara Cote

Photo by Erin Carlson

lancerspiritonline.com

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OPINION

Since the dawn of high school, PDA (Public Display of Affection) has been a controversial topic. From students to teachers, this topic is always the word on the street.

Whether I am in a relationship or not, PDA has always been a trigger of my gag-reflex, no matter the scale.

Below are the various levels of PDA, respectfully organized by a 1-10 ranking of cringey-ness:

Hand-holding across the Hall 5.4 I understand nothing is more important than physical contact every waking moment of the day . . . but I need to get to class.

There are only five minutes to get to each class, and if one is coming from the upper 600s alllll the way to the 500s, it is quite difficult to pass a couple who are taking up both sides of the hallway.

If you really want so much physical contact, why doesn’t one of you scooch closer to the right, just a step or two, like you’re supposed to, so the rest of us can get to class on time?

Awkward Embrace

7.0

Layna Holk REPORTER

Shoulder Rest 8.6 of Despair The best place to handle a tiff in a relationship is surely not at home or in a private area: it’s in the school’s hallways.

It’s okay, little high school relationships that won’t matter by next month, so take your time.

Do you know what will really fix the strain the two of you are going through?

Block a person’s locker and have the missus lean her head on your skinny, bony shoulder, standing in silence for the five minutes between classes.

Not only will that instantly fix your problem (that most likely isn’t the end of the world), it’ll also prevent a person you don’t even know from accessing their locker, causing them to be late to class as well as you.

A perfect mechanism, if you ask me.

Off to War for 45 minutes 9.0

In my book, nothing is more romantic than It is 7:19 and it is time for Commander seeing a freshmen couple leave each other to Prince Charming to head off into battle: A head to their classes. period.

They’re all new and inexperienced to Believe me, Damsel in relationships and Distress, I know. What are aren’t comfortable you going to do without your to enough to swipe a Teddy Bear, Pumpkin, Letquick peck before the Me-Go-Puke, etc., etc., for a bell rings. But trust whole 45 minutes? me, this makes it so Learn? much better.

Pay attention in class?

Rather than a swift Heck no! smooch, the students You must do what every surrounding them heart-eyes-for-their-hunni are blessed with the girl must do: send love letters uncomfortable hug to their dashing soldier from that results from Artwork by Karla Sandoval, underneath the desk, out of reaching over their colored by Mrs. DeWinkeleer your teacher’s sight, obviously. already too-bigBut don’t you worry, to-carry freshmen Damsel, it’s not like it’ll happen another seven backpacks. times throughout the day...

Ugh, I can hear the wedding bells now!

June 2018

Artwork by Karla Sandoval, colored by Victoria Holmes

Full-Tongue Action

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Do you know what really wakes me up in the morning?

Seeing some 16-year-old shove his tongue down his freshman girlfriend’s mouth.

Nothing warms my heart more.

You can truly see (literally) the amount of love, and saliva, that is being passed on to one another.

And when these acts are always done on a blind corner so I accidentally run into them and their interpretation of 50 Shades of Grey?

Nothing better, let me tell you.

All in all, I understand, I really do.

Young love, what’s not to like?

Finding for the first time, that someone special that puts butterflies in your stomach, it truly is a great feeling.

But in the end, keep it to yourself.

I’m sure your 1500 closest friends and faculty do not want to see the inner works of your relationship, and you shouldn’t either.

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“Honestly, I don’t see that much PDA in the hallways.”

- junior Alyssa Griffin

“I feel uncomfortable because sometimes it gets weird.”

- sophomore Matt Ryan

Photos by Laynie Holk and Kathryn Hempfield

“It’s absolutely disgusting.”

- senior Hannah Martin

“It’s pretty gross, just get a bedroom already.”

- sophomore Devon Rheaume

“I feel as though there really shouldn’t be that much PDA just out of respect for your peers. No one really wants to see you making out with your boyfriend/girlfriend.

You can do that on your own if you really love each other. There’s a time and place for everything.”

- senior Catie Derhak lancerspiritonline.com

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a r t y i s fo h W re ve

OPINION

e on ry Art by freshman Robert Derhak

Brooke Carrier REPORTER In recent years enrollment in art classes has been dropping, which surprises students like sophomore Hailey Mosher, who has filled her schedule with as many art classes as she can fit since freshman year.

“There are so many different types of art classes you can take [at LHS],” Mosher said. “The options are endless.

I want to try and get more people into art classes for more than just their one art credit.”

Taking an art class might feel intimidating, but you don’t have to be a Picasso-in-the-making to get something out of an art class. The point of any class is to learn something new.

“The art teachers really just want to help you as much as they can to see you improve,” said Mosher. “They all just want you to be happy with your work.”

Art teachers like Ms. Dyson, Mrs. Halstead and Mrs. Hjelm work hard to ensure students feel comfortable not being the best artist.

“If you have never practiced it, how can you be the best?” Dyson said.

Mosher said one reason she enjoys her art classes is because of teachers like Dyson, who she feels is more approachable than some of her other teachers.

“Teachers like Dyson like to form connections with you,” Mosher said.

“She supports me and always has my back.”

Mosher likes knowing she has a teacher to turn to when things in school don’t go as well as she’d like.

“It’s nice to have a connection with a teacher, to feel like you have someone looking out for you at school,” Mosher said.

Mosher also appreciates that Dyson is there to support students when they reach their accomplishments in her art classes. She said finishing a project that you have created with your bare hands from start to finish can give you a “sense of accomplishment you might not get in your other classes.”

“It isn’t an ‘easy A,’ but it is rewarding to put in all the time and effort it takes to finish an assignment and be proud of it in the end,” Mosher said.

Dyson finds that art classes are the best place for reaching new goals and finding success.

“You can always find success, even if it’s small successes along the way,” Dyson said. “Art is about coming in and thinking differently, trying to think outside the box.”

There are a few misconceptions about the art classes, however—especially

Art by sophomore Hailey Mosher

basic design.

According to Dyson there is no longer a packet of worksheets to complete.

“Instead, projects combine art materials and techniques that students can make more a personal connections with,” Dyson said. “We’ve [also] modified the final exam to make it more hands on.”

Dyson hopes some of these changes will make students more willing to sign up for basic design, so enrollment will go up. She does understand that the master schedule is a complex thing, so sometimes elective classes are scheduled A or H, which often means some students will drop the class.

“We’re competing against sleep,” Dyson said, “and sometimes kids would just rather go to work or leave early,” Dyson said. “Also, there are so many electives, and students don’t always read what a class is or what it entails.”

As for solutions to this drop in enrollment, Dyson thinks students should be able to shadow a variety of

13 Art by Junior Hunter Angione

Above pieces by

Art by junior Elyse Lantagne Art by freshman Nick Sampson

electives since LHS offers so many.

She thinks it’d be useful to be able to see what actually happens in different classes and be able to say, “Oh, this is what you do in painting.”

“Then at the end of 15 minutes,” Dyson said, “you can go check out another class. Almost like how parent night works.”

Another one of Dyson’s ideas is to have art teachers take videos to show what a typical class in their course is like. Then students could watch those videos on The Lancer Spirit Online.

“It’s great that this is a school that has so many electives,” Dyson said. “It’s really incredible because a lot of schools don’t offer anything close to what we do.”

As far as taking an art elective, however, students should know they don’t need to come into an art class already having all the skills they’ll need because they will be taught those skills along the way.

“The class is just about coming in and challenging yourself in a different way,” Dyson said.

Dyson said art classes can be

beneficial to students even if they have no interest in pursuing a career in art. The skills students learn in basic design can be used in their everyday life, including design principles and elements in projects.

“If you can persevere through a drawing or a painting or a sculpture you can use those skills to persevere through other things that you’re doing,” Dyson said.

Art is a class where as long as you truly try your best, pay attention, and are there to learn and make an effort, your grade will reflect that.

“You might try something, and it’s not gonna be perfect, but that’s not how art works. It’s a practice,” Dyson said. “It teaches you to accept that it’s not always going to be perfect, and it doesn’t have to be perfect.”

Dyson thinks more kids should take the opportunity to take more art classes here because “it will just make you a more well-rounded person.” “[An art class] can help you be someone who can have a conversation with anybody, which can only help you in any of the things you want to do with

Manny Rojas, senior Payton Scott, sophomore Cole Mady, senior Elyse Lantagne, junior

the rest of your life,” Dyson said.

Art can also be used as a calming process, so it is useful to learn what medium works for you in a free class offered by the school.

“Maybe you enjoy the process of what it feels like to paint or what it feels like to draw, or what it feels like to sculpt the clay,” Dyson said. “Those kinds of things can be very calming so if you have something like that that you could do after a day of work or after a day of college classes.”

One of the benefits of basic design is that it can be used to sample a variety of art classes because students learn some of the the basics of art in general and about a variety of mediums.

Anybody can take an art class even if they have no skill in the area. These classes aren’t about being the best artist, they are about trying new things.

“A lot of classes are about taking a chance and not being afraid because your fear is going to make you run away instead of trying something new,” Dyson said. “Art can be for anybody.

You just have to want to take that chance.”

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OPINION

Prevent plastic polution Reduce your use of plastic water bottles Madison Martin EDITOR IN CHIEF

Your arch enemies are not the kid who sits behind you in per-calculus with a fancy for pen clicking, nor the couple who pick the area directly in front of your locker as their ideal smoochy spot. You have one arch enemy.

He appears harmless with his one foot tall plastic body, calming blue label that sometimes depicts scenes of nature, and cute white hat but he’s responsible for wasting the Earth ever-depleting supply of crude oil, stealing your money, releasing greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, and clogging up landfills as he strives to achieve his goal of destroying the world.

You’re his most favored accomplice and you don’t even realize it. You allow him to continue his campaign of environmental terror everytime you pick him off of a store shelf and throw him away a few hours later.

If you see this man please either ignore him or recycle him.

There is no reason to throw out a plastic water bottle. Throwing away a plastic water bottle is as lazy, dangerous, and stupid as leaving the car door open while driving because it’s just too heavy for you to shut it. According to National Geographic, only one out of every six plastic water bottles purchased are recycled and this leads to 29 billion water bottles being added to American landfills per year.

Don’t think for a second that after you throw away a bottle that it stops being your problem.

Once a water bottle goes to the landfill it doesn’t just disappear. According to healthyhumanity. com it takes 1,000 years for a plastic water bottle to degrade. Every water bottle your throw away in your life will outlive you and your grandchildren.

Take a second to contemplate exactly how long 1,000 years is. Think about how much humanity has accomplished in 1,000 years.

If plastic water bottles were around in the medieval era, any that were thrown away then would still being sitting in landfills today. Your great-great- great-grandchildren will be able to go to the landfill and visit all the water bottles you left behind after you’ve been dead for over a hundred years.

Instead of leaving your trash for generations

lancerspiritonline.com

of your descendants, please recycle it so it may be used to produce more water bottles, other plastic products, or synthetic fibers.

Just because you’re done using it doesn’t mean it isn’t done being used.

Chances are there’s a recycling bin not far from the trash can you’ve been using. The school makes an attempt to put plenty of recycle bins around. There’s one in every room. You just need to find it and walk three steps over to it.

Recycling your water bottles doesn’t get you off the hook, however. If you really care about the future of humanity, you’ll avoid using plastic water bottles as much as possible.

Plastic water bottles are extremely inefficient and a perfect waste of resources. It takes three times as much water to create the plastic for the bottle than it does to fill it. Your 17oz water bottle required 51oz to produce, that’s 34oz of water wasted.

On average it costs about a dollar to purchase a 17oz water bottle and only costs about 20¢ to process the same amount of tap water. So let’s say you bring a plastic 17oz plastic water bottle with you to school every day. By the end of the year you would have spend over $180 on water, but if you bought yourself a nice $10 reusable 24oz water

Art by Alp Okyar

bottle while back-to-school shopping and used it throughout the year, you would have ended up only spending $46 on water. Also, you’d be able to refill your nice reusable bottle and use it for years to come.

Plastic water bottles are a waste of resources and a waste of money. For your own benefit and for the benefit of the rest of humanity you should avoid using plastic water bottles as much as possible.

Now in the unthinkable and horrific tragedy that you should forget your nice reusable water bottle on a 90-degree day when you have track practice after school, go buy a plastic water bottle from a vending machine. It’s the better alternative than passing out from dehydration.

In fact under those circumstances you should probably buy a few plastic water bottles.

But please recycle them afterward.

Creative Writing

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Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life.

The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. real Rachel life. TheSt.pencil Edited

by Write freshman Louisis your friend.

Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write

by Madison Martin, senior like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your There’s a stain on the floor where the dog died. story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination.

Ten years of nurturing and he didn’t have the courtesy Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write to die on the tile. real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the And then there’s the hole in the wall fate of your story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t that he chewed. Nothing new. just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has There’s a hole in the ceiling too a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and I can see the attic. and rewrite the fate of your story.

Write your life depends on it.

by Alyssa Neal,like junior I’ve been thinking about getting a ladder Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every then making a trap door, make it more piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase charismatic. your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story.

Write like your life depends on it.

Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every Listen.

I’ve never seen the kitchen counter, story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. or a day there isn’t mold in the Do you that?and rewrite the fate of shower.

The pencil is your friend. Erase yourhear mistakes There’s a clump of yellow fuzzy mold your story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagThe way the leaves whistle that I named Mr. Gold. ination. Every story has its own art and every your piece name of art has a story.

We have lovely conversations.

Write real life.in The pencil your friend. of Erase mistakes and rewrite the soft iswhisperings ouryour late-night the fate of your story.Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t Then there’s the glitter, just imagination.Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a meetings? the cursed glitter, story.

Write real life.

The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and From a decade of crafts, Do you hear the way flowers danceon it. Creativrewrite the fate of your story. Write likethe your life depends a decade of parties. ity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of I’ll never get out of the floor. in the wake of our moonlit stroll? art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your misIt’s stuck there with the dog stain. takes and rewrite the hear fate ofthe your story. your life depends on But why would I want to wash out the Do you way theWrite birdslike chitter their memory. it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every If I washed, I’d be washing for decades. piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase greetings your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write like your life And I hate cleaning.

In the trees sway along Every with us? depends on it. Creativity isn’tthat just imagination. story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your Do you hear that?

The drain’s full of hair, friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write like But at this point, what do I care? your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has Listen.

The insides of houses aren’t meant to be seen. its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write It’s fine as long as my yard is clean. like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story Which it isn’t. has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story.

Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art and every piece of art has a story. Write real life. The pencil is your friend. Erase your mistakes and rewrite the fate of your story. Write like your life depends on it. Creativity isn’t just imagination. Every story has its own art

A series of poems on the subject of home.

C l e a n Ho m e = Wa s t e d L i f e

The Nature of Our Love

16

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If there’s a want to travel, there’s a need to move, To feel the sand in your toes or the dirt beneath your feet as you sprint down the unfamiliar road.

When it rains and you just stand there under the roaring sky.

When you walk the streets in another country, Swim in the hidden coves of the lagoon, Wear unfamiliar garb, And eat the weirdest food you can find.

Traveling is just another form of education. You learn about yourself, and you learn the things that school just can’t teach.

Teach Learn.

Love’s Liquid

yourself.

Explore.

by Jenna Stowell, freshman

Water, water, love’s liquid.

You’re so fluid, so clear, so important How could you matter this much, colorless and transparent The way you rain over me shouldn’t be allowed So tasteless, my thoughts must be clouded One moment you’re here, the next you’re gone Stuck in a cycle where you just runoff It’s like you evaporate, gone with a snap But when I boil it all down, I know you’ll always come back How does it feel, to be so lacking?

Only 2% of you is useful, the rest is just fancy packaging Yet you take my breath away, it’s one of your best elements The other element sets me aflame, but don’t get arrogant

How does it feel, to be so lacking?

Only 2% of you is useful, the rest is just fancy packaging Yet you take my breath away, it’s one of your best elements The other element sets me aflame, but don’t get arrogant Everyone needs people like you, but we’re a selfish race How would I get filled up without your presence Three worlds away, people lack you like you lack qualities But to me, you cause so many unfortunate calamities.

I love you, how you never have a shape And how you never have to hide, since you can never wear a cape.

So flow your rivers on every side.

Water, water, love’s liquid.

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The Sailor

by Rachel St. Louis, freshman

Home is the stretch we run for And what we long to see But when we’re walking along English shores, It’s on the ocean we want to be

Peter gave me a coy grin.

“To treasure an’ to love.”

“Take me home, Peter Garney.”

“Not till you swear by heaven above.”

So when we’re out on the water In Mr. Garney’s little wooden boat The horizon is further, air colder And I suddenly want my coat

Swear? Swear what? I wondered.

Peter looked determined while he steered.

The shore came closer as my mind pondered.

Something told me it wasn’t the new horizon I feared.

But I left that at home, Along with my dignity So now I embrace the sea foam While we sail away from integrity Peter Garney is a nimble boy my age, well taught, And he steers with a steady hand.

“Ain’t far from from England yet, I thought.”

He said this when we saw land.

“Ireland ‘tisn’t this close, Peter.”

I touched his shoulder and he squinted, smiling.

“Daft li’l Meredith, you always a dreamer.”

Something about this boat ride was tiring.

“I wanted Ireland, Peter.

Where’ve you taken me?”

“I want ye to be my wife.”

Peter choked out the words, yet our boat continued to move.

“Thought Ma said I had the rest of my life.”

I realized I was nearing eighteen and Peter knew.

“Fine, Peter Roy Garney.

But don’t leave me an old maid all alone.”

A smile broke over his lips and he said, “Love ye since I first saw your purty red head.”

Pa wouldn’t approve of a sailor, but I just found my home.

Art by Rachel St. Louis. Birds by Victoria Holmes.

Rhea Hernandez REPORTER

This is a sequel to another short story I wrote called “Thoughts,” which you can find on lancerspiritonline.com

There it was again. That monster thing. The thing I keep seeing, diminishing my colors.

At first it all just wild flames of flying colors, moving in the air with a flow of ocean waves and wind. They could form into shapes of all kinds, and then into creatures and figures.

A lot of the times, those colors form into ordinary people and things, often what’s part of my life, my world. But then… something kept appearing, wiping out my precious colors.

“Robbel?”

It only took less than a second to become a flash of a blur across my eyes and then disappear. What was it?

“Sweetie, wake up. I know you’re still sleeping.”

My eyes flickered a bit, blinking out of thought.

“Finally mastered sleeping with your eyes open? Well done, my dude,” said Dallas.

As the morning light shone, my eyes adjusted and the colors formed again. This time, these were domestic colors, colors of my reality.

Morning light shone through the kitchen window on my right, making the whole scene bright and warm as if summer were welcoming itself into our home. At the front of the kitchen was the stove where Mom was making breakfast. Small brown cabinets lined up on all three sides of the golden-yellow walls just as the white counter encircled the same three walls right below.

I could smell the fried eggs and rice just as I heard them sizzling in the pan. Mom would wince at the pain in annoyance as hot oil popped around the eggs. You’d think she’d wear gloves covering from her hands to her elbows for safety from the bite of those oil pops, but no. Instead, she wore her comfy clothes in the morning: A loose T-shirt and pj shorts, and since she was cooking, her auburn hair tied at the back in a ponytail so they

wouldn’t cover her golden eyes.

While she cooked, Dallas, my fourteenyear-old brother, got his glass of milk, and I got my water. I sat a across from from him on the wooden table in the center of our somewhatsmall kitchen.

“Honey, I bought some parsley yesterday.

You wanna add it to the eggs?” said Ma as she walked into the kitchen. She embraced Mom by the hips, giving her the usual morning kiss on the cheek.

“Ya sure. Just a little,” said Mom. She turned to look at me and Dallas. “You guys okay with that? It’s actually pretty good.”

“Ya, sure,” we said while taking out our phones.

“Sounds good to me,” said Mom. Ma took out some parsley from the fridge and began cutting. While they cooked, Dallas and I took out our phones.

In short time, breakfast was served and soon eaten in an even shorter time.

“Done,” Dallas said. He rushed to the bathroom to brush his teeth. I swear he inhales his food instead of eating it, I thought. A minute later, I was done too. Then I rushed to the bathroom to do the same thing while our moms talked amongst themselves.

While I brushed my teeth, Dallas was “trying” to make his hair neat as if it were actually possible. He normally likes it a little messy (mostly because he doesn’t have time to really brush it), but there was only one explanation for this sudden effort.

“All right, who is she?” I asked, then did an exaggerated gasp. “Or is it a he?”

“First off, still straight. Second of all, it’s no one,” Dallas said, still fixing his hair.

“Dude, you’re brushing your hair, or at least trying to tame that mess on your head,” I said with a smirk. In response, he smirked back, pushed me, and said, “shut up.”

“Oh come on! We both know you wouldn’t

do this unless someone has really gotten your attention, or better yet, stolen your heart,” I said in a stupid lovey-dovey voice.

He sighed and said slowly and in a hesitant voice, “Well, it’s Jinde,” and with that, he looked at the ground shyly, leaving the bathroom.

Now, I knew at least two things at that moment, and at the same time, I had twenty or more questions. Dallas knew Jinde even before she decided to become a girl, so she was his closest friend. Although I never thought of them as a couple.

As I reversed the car out of the driveway and onto the road, the sun above shone down on the house enhance the white on the walls and the roofs in contrast with black. Domestic neighborhood. Some of the other houses either were as white as ours or a tan kind of brown, but all had a small, plain front lawn. Domestic neighborhood. I saw someone kids getting into their parents’ cars while the older kids either drove themselves, waited for the bus, or simply walked. Domestic people. Domestic life.

Domestic colors.

In the car was awkward silence, the most unbearable kind of silence yet the most frequently occurring and made the atmosphere feel like thick fog. I want to say something but the words always get lodged into my throat.

Come on, I thought. It’s my brother, not a girl.

“So… You like Jinde?” I said in the best casual voice I could possibly muster. Great, I thought. I think I just put him on the spot.

“Ya,” he said. If he could, his face would turn red, but I’m pretty sure Indian skin is either incapable of that or it just doesn’t show.

“You know I’m not mad, right? I think Jinde’s nice and you guys have been friends since we were little so…,” I said. I’m really trying to be comforting. Why is something like trying to be caring so hard to do, especially when someone

All art by Rhea Hernandez

needs it most?

He sighs and continues on, saying , “I don’t know… Like, we know each other so well, but that’s just as friends. You know I’m bad with talking… well, general communication overall.

Do we even like each other the same way?”

At this point he could go on ranting out thoughts, but if it’s enough for him to have me to just listen, I’ll be okay with it. Sometimes all we have to do is just listen; reacting or responding to it is the harder part. But he didn’t rant on and instead just ended it with that question.

“Hmm…. hey, look here, bro,” I said with a simple smile. I had an idea.

When he turned to look at me, my eyes glowed with little flames flaring against the brown of my eyes. He smiled when he saw. He and I knew what I could do, and he loved that he didn’t know what exactly what I’ll do. We took each other’s hand, the lines in my hand glowing an electric blue.

“Look outside,” I said while keeping my eyes on the road.

As he looked, they were there. The world didn’t actually change of course, but out there were creatures and plants no one else could see. It was a savanna of imaginations.

A dragon-like creature flew above the the houses, it’s enormous dragonfly wings beating while its serpent shaped body swaying in the air. Families of color-changing furred beatles mingled on the front lawns as we passed by, a few nursing one or two young beatles. Some of them I couldn’t even describe because they didn’t look anything like animals from here. A herd of jackal-headed creatures with human body’s (I called them the Anubi herd ) ran along the car. One turned to look at us and gave a shriek before running ahead.

My brother had a gleaming smile on him.

I knew this would lift up his spirits, seeing the the “imagine-world,” as he called it. He told me I had the child’s eye because children saw the world through their imagination; I liked the sound of that so that’s what I called my so-called ability - child’s eye.

Maybe I should find a better name for it later.

“What was that?” asked Dallas as he looked through the window.

“Hm?” I said. I glanced

out his window but saw nothing out of the ordinary, not even among the Imas (short for imaginative creatures).

Wait a minute…

Swoosh!

It went by in a flash, but I knew what I saw.

It was that creature again… but, I was a awake so how“Robbel!”

It took only a blink to see something in front of the car before the world turned black.

It was only a few minutes but the dark seemed to last for hours. Dark.

Slowly but surely, muffled voices could be heard but not seen. After some several minutes colors started to form again but only into blurred pictures.

There was a blurred body next to me. It was Dallas, unconscious with a blotch of blood on his head. Outside, what looked like a car rolled up with flashing lights. The police? Or was that the ambulance? It was all white sound now.

The cluster of people, several cars building up traffic, the police controlling the crowd, and the deafening ringing in my head.

“Robbel.”

“Robbel.”

Who was that? Wait, Wait no. Everything was blurring into darkness, the sounds fading away as if I was drifting away from all of it. No, I don’t want to go to sleep.

Stop. Please wake up. I need to find Dallas.

Dallas, my brother. Wake up. Wake up. Wake up!

“Alright. You’ll wake up.”

What?

My question wasn’t answered, but I couldn’t care at that point.

I was waking up, the blurs coming into form, but something was wrong.

My eyes are staring into nothing, yet the they seem fixed onto the ground somehow making sure my feet don’t trip on themselves.

Both hands in my sweater pockets, head down, and blank face. My mechanical legs continue to walk down the sidewalk.

Everything’s so quiet… so quiet.

I’m running.

19

20

Señora Bartlett shows the Spanish world to students one class, one trip at a time Madi Rearick REPORTER

Spanish teacher Señora Bartlett has known for most of her life that she wanted to be a teacher because so many of teachers throughout her life inspired her. Why Spanish? Because after her first year taking a Spanish class, she fell in love with the language and decided that is what she would teach.

“I actually had some teachers in school that were role models to me, and when I started taking Spanish those are the ones that made it fun and interesting,” Bartlett said. “I also enjoyed working with kids, so put those two things together and here we are.”

Bartlett has been teaching at LHS for about 18 years, and taught at Bishop Guertin for about the same amount of time before coming to the high school. At the time when she worked at BG, it was an all boys school, which meant that she was one of very few women there.

“Being at BG had it’s challenges in the beginning because some of the male students, even some of my colleagues, were resentful of a women on their turf,” Bartlett said. “There were little, subtle things, but I was right out of

Photo courtesy of Señora Bartlett

Señora Bartlett, Julia Freschette, and Señora Carrasquillo in Granda Spain standing in front of the Christopher Columbus Statue.

June 2018

college, so I didn’t let any of it get to me. It was a different world back then, and if some of the things that happened then happened today, I would probably own the school.”

One of Bartlett’s favorite things to do in the classroom is to play music to help her students understand what they’re learning better.

“In the lower levels, I play a lot of learning songs to help them learn the grammar and tenses,” Bartlett said. “While in Spanish II, I did some more popular music such as Selena and Shakira, and I think it’s really fun to do music because everyone can relate to it. It gives them a chance to be able to hear the grammar that we’re using in real world situations.”

She said that “she loves” to see her students interact with these songs in the classroom, and sometimes even outside of the classroom.

“We had just played the song ‘Como La Flor’ in class and as I was walking out of Ocean State Job Lot, and all of a sudden I hear this music blaring,” Bartlett said. “I look around and it’s one of my students, Drew, sitting in his car, and he’s singing away to ‘Como La Flor’.”

One of Bartlett’s students, sophomore Alexa Naar said Bartlett teaches Spanish in a way that makes it “easy to understand,” making the class something she looks forward to every day.

“I really enjoyed it when she incorporated music into our lessons,” Naar said, “because it was something that helped us remember what we were learning and really get the tenses into our heads. It was also something different that most other teachers don’t do, and it makes learning fun.”

Freshman Sophia Fonseca has also enjoyed being a part of Bartlett’s class this year.

“She just makes learning a good time, and I like how we do other things than just take notes,” Fonseca said. “She has really helped me understand how to use all the different tenses and words, and be able to speak Spanish the correct way.”

Bartlett would never want to stop teaching because “being able to help just one student can make it all worth it.”

She said she genuinely enjoys teaching the lower level Spanish classes because it’s rewarding to “build that foundation with the kids and see them excel” and then go on to upper level Spanish such as AP or honors level

Photo by Madi Rearick

Señora Bartlett is writing on the board to teach her class about the imperfect tense.

courses.

“I also enjoy working with the kid that might struggle that finally gets it,” Bartlett said.

“So that’s really rewarding when I can make a difference that way.”

As a teacher, she wants to be able to show her students the real world as much as possible, which is why she continues to bring students on Spanish trips around the world.

“These trips bring the classroom to real life,” Bartlett said. “They see something that is valuable, that they can use, and it makes things real for kids. It gives them a more authentic experience to see the world through the eyes of others, and it really inspires kids to do more with the language when they come back.”

By being able to bring students on these trips, it allows her to develop a friendship with them and to stay in contact after they graduate.

One of her favorite memories was when she was able to visit one of her past students, Julia

21

“I thought I was always in tune with the kids and tried to be compassionate, but I think having a child and seeing their progress and struggles along the way has made me more understanding of the issues kids have in school and with their families at home.

Knowing that not everybody comes from a home where mom and dad are together, and having gone through that myself, has made me a better teacher along the way.”

- Señora Bartlett Frechette, while they were in Spain this past year.

“It was very, very cool when we got to meet up with her [Julia] in Granada by the Christopher Columbus statue, and she had brought a few other girls from her program,” Bartlett said. “It was nice to see one of our own students doing a study abroad where we were able to meet with her and see her continue using the language.”

Being a teacher isn’t always just fun and games, however. Bartlett said sometimes you get a student who just might surprise you.

“I had basically the whole hockey team in my class, and I sent some kids to the board to do some work,” Bartlett said. “I guess they egged on another kid and they told him that they were all going to do this when they went up, but only this one kid did it. He mooned me.”

She didn’t find out that the boy was planning on doing it with a group of people until about 15 years later at a class reunion, and by that time they were all laughing about it.

Bartlett also has a son of her own named Ryan, who is now 27 years old, and works as transportation specialist at the Federal Transit Administration in Cambridge, MA. “He does all kinds of things that are pretty cool,” Bartlett said.

While her son no longer lives at home, her “nest” is anything but empty. She has also had 4 labrador retrievers named Abbot, Shadow, AJ, and her current 15 month old pup, Costello.

“I have to go home and either take [Costello] for a walk around the neighborhood, or go to the dog park to wear him out because he’s got all this energy,” Bartlett said. “He’s good company, especially since Ryan’s moved out, and he makes me laugh.”

Bartlett said being both a mom and a teacher has taught her many lessons along the way, and one of those is being able to balance spending time with her family and also being there for her students.

“Being a mom opened my eyes up a little more,” she said. “I thought I was always in tune with the kids and tried to be compassionate, but I think having a child and seeing their progress and struggles along the way has made me more

understanding of the issues kids have in school and with their families at home. Knowing that not everybody comes from a home where mom and dad are together, and having gone through that myself, has made me a better teacher along the way.”

Photo Courtesy of Señora Bartlett

Mrs. Bartlett’s son Ryan sits with theire dog Costello, as they get ready for a Patriots game.

Photo courtesy of Señora Bartlett

Señora Bartlett and her students visit the Alcazar Fortress in Segovia during their Spain trip in April 2017.

lancerspiritonline.com

22

Die welt (the world) through the eyes of foreign exchange student Leonie Wittig

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Walking through the halls, a bypasser hears REPORTER and understands conversations from many groups of students without even thinking about it. For sophomore Leonie Wittig, however, it’s not as easy to understand these English conversations in passing. At least it wasn’t when she first arrived from Germany as an exchange student.

“My English got a lot better,” Wittig said.

“I’m more confident to go up to people and talk to them.”

Wittig was always interested in travel. She researched and found the Swedish company EF (formerly Europeiska Ferieskolan) on her own, and with the support of her parents made her way to America despite not knowing much about it.

“I knew California is very warm and New York is cold,” Wittig said.

“That’s it.

I didn’t know so much about it, but I thought it could be cool here because I knew the people here were very friendly and openminded.”

And friendly people Wittig found. Once she got to America and the Curry family took Wittig in, she became fast friends with junior Cassidy Curry and freshman Amanda Curry. Since she had no siblings of her own back home, this was new to her.

“I’m very close with [Amanda and Cassidy.]”

Wittig said. “They’re like my sisters now.”

Despite having these two, it’s hard going to a new school, let alone a new country. Wittig experienced some challenges making friends until meeting Allison Roberts, a sophomore, in her house office one day. side, Wittig has been making strides in the “I went to my house office and she was Londonderry High School community. In sitting there,” Wittig said. “I was like ‘Do you Germany she played handball and was easily know where I have to sign out?’ and she was able to apply those skills to volleyball. In like ‘I don’t know, it’s my first day.’” addition, Wittig has also participated on Since Wittig knew what it was like to be the ski and track teams in her time so far at the “new kid,” she and Roberts became instant Londonderry. friends, especially since they ended up being in “We don’t have school teams,” Wittig said. the same piano class and lunch period.

“I think we had a golf team one year… so you With the Currys and Rogers by her

June 2018

have to go in clubs to play [in Germany]. When you’re playing here on a school team it’s much better because you get to hang out with your friends… I think you get to know them a lot better.”

In the classroom, she decided to take classes she’s interested in or as with math, so she won’t forget everything when she goes back to Germany. As this year doesn’t count academically for Wittig (she’ll have to retake her sophomore year in Germany), she said she’s experiencing a bit of “foreign exchange senioritis,” focusing more on the experience than the grades.

She said she is enjoying her foods class, especially making a pizzelle, which is an Italian waffle cookie. Her favorite class this year, however, has been psychology and learning about how people like magicians can trick the brain.

“How can you trick your mind? There’s these movies where a magician does something and you’re like ‘wow how does it work?’ I really like that,” Wittig said.

Outside of school and the playing fields, Wittig has had the opportunity with the Currys to see even more of the US. Over breaks they’ve visited both California and Hawaii although Wittig says her favorite thing to do with her new pals is playing cards.

“Obviously [I really liked] Hawaii and I really liked California,” Wittig said of her adventures with the Currys. “But, I think it sounds kind of awkward, I liked just sitting there and playing cards.”

Wittig is no stranger to travel, although her previous trips have not been as extreme as those to the US and the ones with the Currys to the Western seaboard. In Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands are just an hours drive away, so she’s been easily able to travel there. At her school, Wittig was prepared to go on these trips as she was learning four other languages beside her native German: English, French, Spanish, and Latin. She’s shared this knowledge

of Europe with her hosts both teaching as well as learning.

“I think having her here has really enhanced the cultural aspect [of what I know about Germany],” host Cassidy Curry said. “It’s made me really wish I was living in Europe because I could travel between countries so much easier.”

When her time here is up, Wittig will return back to Germany. She’s missed her friends and family back home but is sure to miss us as well.

Her mother has mentioned that perhaps next summer she can return to visit.

“I kind of want to stay here but I also really want to go home,” Wittig said. “It’s like 50-50.

On the one side I want to go home but on the other side I want to stay…”

As for the future, Wittig will have to see

23

what her grades hold. At the Heinrich-HeineGymnasium in Mettmann she takes 13 to 14 classes a year with a different schedule every day of the week. She hopes her scores are high enough to study possibly biology or the science behind climate change, medicine, or, thanks to her new favorite class, psychology.

Her current leave date is June 26 although due to the snow days that’s suspect to change.

Wittig knows that she’ll go back changed and that things won’t be as they were when she left.

“You’re not a different person but your character is sort of different because you had so many experiences here,” Wittig said. “You grow with everything and the people at home are still the same but you haven’t seen them.”

Take Your Own Foreign Exchange

Leonie Wittig stands with other German EF students before departing for America. The Swedish company found the area and hosts that would be the best fit for each of these students.

For those who want to participate in an exchange yourself, start following in Wittig’s steps. Do the research, find an organization that’s right for you, a country that’s right for you. Talking to your foreign language teacher is a great place to start, as they can recommend places based on your language proficiency.

As with any big decision however, make sure to keep your guardians in the loop. They won’t appreciate it when you walk up with your bags packed saying “Hey so I need a plane ticket to North Korea…”

efexchangeyear.org Stationed out of nearby Boston Massachusetts, EF is the organization Leonie used to travel to the US. With countries ranging from Austria to Thailand, you’re sure to find the country for you.

Middle School

For middle schoolers, EF offers a range of trips for entire classes.

Ranging from seven to eleven days teachers have the opportunity to take their students to variety of places across Europe with a specialized tourguide and unique activities.

High School

With a high school exchange, students have the opportunity to become fully immersed in a country’s culture.

With EF, your family can also sign up to become a host family and take in a student from across the globe for a year like the Currys did for Leonie.

Wittig practices her piano skills in Piano Fundamentals. She shares this class with her close friend Allison Roberts.

College

With many opportunities for college students, your possibilities are endless. Take a week long trip, or four, across five continents or participate in a study abroad program and learn as you travel.

Wittig shares a selfie.

Photos courtesy of Leonie Wittig, EF, and Kat Provost.

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24

Sampson rebooted.

Networking with the man behind the network.

Photo by Alex McIntosh

From working with Mrs. Provenzano in the computer repair class to overseeing and maintaining the network to repairing hardware throughout the building, PC Specialist Mr. Sampson is a busy man.

Alex Mclntosh REPORTER

He sits in his throne surrounded by over it. The problems are constant, and often 12 monitors, using them to keep tabs on the unpredictable. school’s vast network. He eyeballs the helpdesk “Sometimes it is a simple adjustment, other ticket screen, waiting for the next problem. He times you really have to sit there, and maybe has access to the camera system to make sure take a computer apart and replace some parts in none go offline. it,” Sampson said.

He is well known, but certainly not well When he isn’t fixing problems, doing understood. He is Mr. Sampson, the school’s PC webinars, or in some sort of training, he is specialist, the man responsible for keeping the usually with the students. Mr. Sampson lectures network running at its peak and leads labs in Mrs. performance.

“The one thing that’s constant Provenzano’s computer class. In addition, What does a in life is change, and nothing repair he has yet more students typical day look exemplifies that more than to manage —the ones who work for him in like? the computer industry.” the internship program.

You may have seen -Mr. Sampson The other key person Mr. Sampson walking the he works with is Mrs. halls, or at work in his Hutchinson, who “command center,” but oversees room 218 and also helps teachers and surely you have wondered what it is he spends students with computer issues. his days doing.

“I couldn’t do the job without Maintaining the 1,500 computers and, just [Hustchinson],” Sampson said. “She’s my right recently, the projectors is the forefront of Mr. hand and Sue Provenzano is my left. It’s a great Sampson’s responsibility. He will get reports, team effort between the administration, Mrs. such as “computer won’t turn on, printer is Hutchinson with curriculum lab/mobile lab jammed, smartboard isn’t working, etc.” and management, the computer repair class with have to find out what the issue is and resolve

Mrs. Provenzano, and the independent study and internships with me.”

There is a reason LHS is, more or less, on the latest operating systems and has up-to-date services and technology. To deploy updates on a large scale takes planning and research. LHS ahead of most other districts in the state, and there is a reason for that. Anywhere from 3D printers to a new handheld tablet, someone has to make sure it can be deployed properly in a school setting.

“Every time there is a change, we buy it, we use it, and we test it,” Sampson said.

How did Sampson end up here?

After his service as an aircraft technician in the Marines, Sampson had trouble finding a job in his field. A large airlines company of the time had recently gone bankrupt, so the industry’s jobs were quickly taken. He turned to retail to find employment, spending around 10 years in the industry and working management positions. In the late 1980s, Sampson turned to the growing tech industry to find a stable job, and to spend more time with his family.

“It was an opportunity to change my career path, reinvent myself,” Sampson said.

Sampson ended up at Londonderry High

School based off of the word of a friend, who was an employee at the district. While he was getting his computer certifications, he was coaching for the district. His friend tossed up the idea of him taking an opening as the computer specialist, and it’s where he has been ever since.

“I liked what I was doing with the coaching aspect, and with computers,” Sampson said. “I thought this would be a good marriage—a good place to work. It ended up working out well.”

Things have changed…

Mr. Sampson has been at the district for 18 years, and he has essentially seen and helped the network and computer infrastructure go from next to nothing to what it is today.

Technology in education is a relatively new thing, and it has fast became an essential part of preparing students for the real world.

“When I was in high school, there was nothing (no computers),” Sampson said.

In it’s infancy, you wouldn’t recognize the school’s computer network. For the most part, only teachers had access to computers, and the network itself was basic.

In the early 2000s, that began to change —the school started to bring computers into the classroom. Eventually, more and more were brought in, and the network began to grow. Change has been ever present—going from Windows 2000, to XP (which you may remember from the iconic “field background”), and, more recently, windows 7 and 10. Recently, the big change has been the much needed switch to the Google services, which Sampson is at the backbone of.

“The one thing that’s constant in life is change, and nothing exemplifies that more than the computer industry,” Sampson said. “It’s always changing.”

Internship program

When the school district started to introduce computers into the classroom, more help was needed to maintain them.

To solve this problem, Sampson began working with students—something that has evolved from a small scale program to a well known work opportunity for students to help out and get work experience.

It started with a few students working over the summer to help keep the new classroom computers up to date. Over time, the program has grown along with the school’s computer network.

The growth is no surprise as, according to Mr. Sampson, there are around 1,500 devices in the building. That’s a number that continues to increase as more and more technology is brought in every year.

The purpose of employing students goes beyond keeping the network running. It functions as a part of Sampson’s and the entire technology education department’s goal of getting students ready for the real world.

“Our job is to expose students to how to do things so they can make informed decisions about their career,” Sampson said.

What’s it like working for Sampson?

Working for Sampson, whether it be in the summer as a job, or as an independent study, involves similar work to what he does on a daily basis. Troubleshooting, upgrading systems,

25

building computer labs, etc. are all part of the workload and aren’t uncommon.

There are a few different times in which students are able to work for Sampson. An independent study, which involves working during the school day and for a credit is an option, or as employment over the summer.

Jordan Turner, a senior who has recently started working for Mr. Sampson during a free period describes the problems he faces as anywhere from “this printer is jammed” to “why is this whole wing not getting Internet to the classrooms.” Overall, he has enjoyed working for Sampson, and describes him as a nice guy “once you get to know him.”

While Sampson is a nice guy, he does sometimes push students beyond their comfort zone.

He holds everyone working for him accountable and can seem tough. But that’s exactly how it is in the real world. Working for Sampson, even just for a year, will often change someone for the better.

What does Sampson’s future look like?

Mr. Sampson has worked at LHS for 18 long years, and has started revolutionary programs like the internship program. In addition, he has changed the dynamic of the entire school’s network and has kept the school up to date with the latest technology.

The only remaining question is, how much longer can Sampson’s legacy go on for?

Fortunately, it isn’t coming to an end anytime soon, at least not according to Sampson.

“I love my job. I don’t want to go anywhere else.” Sampson said. “I plan to be here for at least another 10 years... I’ll be around until they drag me out.”

Photo courtesy of Mr. Sampson

Mr. Sampson and Mrs. Provenzano teach students in the computer repair class how to maintain computers throughout the school. Sampson also has a group of students as interns throughout the summer who help him get all the computers ready for each new school year.

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From floor to beam, Croteau leads a balanced life Marissa McKay REPORTER

Chalky bars, a four inch beam, a bouncy floor, and a stationary vault table. For some, these might be foreign objects, but for junior Maddie Croteau, this is home.

While some gymnasts switch from gym to gym, Croteau’s club team at Spectrum Gymnastics Academy in Londonderry has always been the place for Croteau.

“I did the Mommy and Me classes with my mother, so it’s always been Spectrum,” Croteau said. “I just think that it’s a good place to spend my time. I mean I love everyone here and it keeps me strong and healthy, so that’s always good.”

Her 14-year long gymnastics career hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing. Over the years, she has broken twelve bones and has had two surgeries.

“I’ve broken anything from toes and fingers to arms and ankles,” Croteau said. “Basically every year I’ve gotten hurt, but most years I’ve still been able to compete at States. This year I wasn’t able to compete at States for club.”

However, to Croteau these injuries haven’t been for nothing. She said they have taught her a lot, not only about this sport, but also about herself.

“I’d say obstacles like these have affected me positively,” Croteau said. “It’s made it so I know how to overcome something that might not always go your way. It taught me about taking

care of yourself and realizing when your body has had enough and you need to focus.”

Like many other gymnasts, mental blocks on skills have also been something that she has always struggled with. A mental block is when there is a trick that the gymnast is trying to do, but her brain is preventing her from going.

Because of these, she has had to learn how to get outside of her own head and push through it.

“Mental blocks are very tough, but they kind of come along with gymnastics,” Croteau said.

“It makes you a better gymnast. Repetition is probably the best thing. You just have to trust yourself and then repeat the skill that you’re scared of over and over, until you’re not scared of it anymore, which can be tough. But I’ve overcome a lot of those.”

For her, beam is the scariest thing, so that’s where she gets the most mental blocks.

“You’re up there and it’s 4-inches wide and it’s high,” Croteau said. “It used to be my favorite event until the skills got harder, so I think that doubt plays a big part in what scares me and what doesn’t.”

Croteau has had her fair share of doubts and downhills in gymnastics. At one point, she decided that she didn’t want to do gymnastics anymore and quit for three months in sixth grade.

“I just thought that it wasn’t for me because it was just too much,” Croteau said “and I kept getting injured. But I missed it too much, so I had to come back. I realized that I couldn’t do without it.”

She has learned that even when it gets hard, the best thing to do is to pick yourself back up and keep going, even if you don’t want to.

“Of course, there are some days when I wake up, and I don’t necessarily want to go to an 8 a.m. practice,” Croteau said. “So there have been times when I just don’t want to do it, but I think that’s what makes it a competitive sport, because you have to be willing to do things Photo by Maggie Croteau that you don’t want to do.

Sixth grade Croteau pauses during floor for a picture during a meet.

June 2018

Photo by Marissa McKay

Maddie Croteau stands on her hands during a practice at her home gym, Spectrum Gymnastics Academy.

Anyone can do well when they feel good, but not everyone can push through something they don’t want to do.”

One thing she said that keeps her going and makes her work harder is the support and help she receives from her teammates and friends.

“I’ve known my friend Chloe since I was eight,” Croteau said. “We’ve been on vacations together. We’ve always been there for each other, so I know she’ll be a lifelong friend. I’ve also known Ashley since she was an annoying 10-year-old. We’ve helped each other through a lot, especially high school stuff. She will be a

Photo by Maggie Croteau

Croteau swings on the uneven bars to finish off her routine while her coach waits on the other side for her dismount.

lancerspiritonline.com

lifelong friend too. Without these relationships, I’d be in trouble. I probably wouldn’t be as happy. We’re all very close. We all love having gym sleepovers and just getting crazy and having fun together.”

Because her friends are there for her, she always makes sure that she is there to help them out and cheer them up.

“Maddie brings a lot of energy to the team and is always good to all of her teammates and everyone in the gym,” teammate Ashley Griffin said.

Her dependability doesn’t stop when she walks out of the gym after practice or a meet, however.

“Maddie brings something to the team that no one else can,” teammate Seana Kelly said. “In competition, she is consistent and reliable, but she is outside of the gym too. She is always there when you need someone to talk to, and she’s a good role model for the younger girls.”

Her close relationship with her longtime coach Elyse Lecain has also helped her in the sport throughout the years.

“Elyse has been my coach since I started competing,” Croteau. “She’s like a second mom to me, so it’s nice to have that relationship in the gym too.”

Lecain has worked with Croteau for over ten years and said she “is one of the hardest working athletes” she’s ever coached.

“It hasn’t been an easy journey as Maddie has had to overcome many setbacks,” Lecain said.

“But she continues to put in the effort to gain new skills.”

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Croteau said her parents have “always been very supportive” of her as they are always pushing her to do her best and helping her out when she needs it.

“They’ve been at every meet they can,” Croteau said. “They want me to do my best. They’ve just been really good. I think that my parents have always been those parents that don’t allow you to just not do anything, like not do a sport, Photo by Maggie Croteau so they’ve always Croteau does a straddle jump during floor warmups at a meet at Phantom Gymnastics in 2013. encouraged me to do it.” gymnastics,” Croteau said “because I know -Maddie Croteau Another thing that I’m just not at that level right now. But it’s that has helped with such a huge part of my life, so when it’s gone her hardships over it’ll be tough, and I’m not ready to let it go the years is positive thinking during practices yet.” and before meets.

However, when she is done with her “That’s definitely something I’ve learned gymnastics career, she said she will carry with during gymnastics,” Croteau said. “That positive her the life lessons that she has learned over thinking really does make a difference because the years. there’ve been days where I’ve been negative and “Gymnastics has taught me about then I’ve had negative results. Positive thinking determination, motivation,” Croteau said. “It’s always prevails.” taught me what it means to be a part of a team, Carrying her positivity with her, she goes to it’s taught me to be a leader,” Croteau said. “To most meets just to have fun. Big meets can be be a role model to the younger kids, and it’s intimidating and nerve-wracking for her, but made me who I am today.” she still enjoys it.

“You’re not there to kill yourself or stress over the little things,” Croteau said. “You’re there because you love it. I think that’s always my favorite part. People who don’t like competing will never stick with gymnastics. It’s a very competitive sport.”

Though winning is fun, Croteau knows that it isn’t everything and there are more important things.

“Winning isn’t as important as meeting my goals,” Croteau said. “If I didn’t win, but I was able to stick my beam series or have perfect landings on everything, I guess that just means that I just need to work harder on other stuff, but at least I made my goals.”

When her high school years are done, she plans on going to college and competing in either club gymnastics or track. She doesn’t think that Division I, or the highest level of college sports, is an option for her at this point, but she is still interested in continuing gymnastics.

“I’m not putting too much Photo by Marissa McKay pressure on myself to go big for Croteau takes a quick break after completing a tumbling pass on the

“Winning isn’t as important as meeting my goals.”

Photo by Maggie Croteau

Croteau laughs with her teammates and coach at the end of the meet.

floor during practice.

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Jeff Cieslikowski: A Lancer Forever Erin Carlson REPORTER

As Senior Jeff Cieslikowski’s year comes to a close, his new life in college will begin, and he looks forward to this new chapter in his life.

“It’s sad that I’m leaving such a great place with amazing people,” Cieslikowski said. “But the world changes. Life wouldn’t be interesting if we spent it all in the same place.”

As well as focusing on his studies, Cieslikowski has been a very active member in the high school. During his tenure here, he has been involved in cross country, Big Buddies, National Honor Society, class reps and a host of other clubs.

“I’m honored to have served the community here, and I hope my class has made a positive impact at the school,” he said.

Cieslikowski also held the role of president of his 2018 graduating class, which he said was “a big commitment.”

“But I absolutely loved it,” Cieslikowski said.

“I have been exposed to opportunities I would have never had otherwise, and I have learned an incredible amount representing my peers.”

Cieslikowski has also enjoyed being part of the Lancer Marching Band. He plays trumpet and was a section leader with senior Sophia Scaccia. According to Cieslikowski, it takes “a lot of responsibility to lead,” as well as experience beyond playing an instrument.

“I’ve known Jeff since 6th grade, and he has always been one of the most caring people I know. He’s dedicated, strong-willed and open minded,” Scaccia said. “When we were announced as section leaders, we developed an even better relationship.

He was the best co-leader I could ask for.”

Scaccia was really glad she got to take on the challenge of being a leader with Cieslikowski, and he has had a good experience as well.

“There are parts of band everyone dreads going to, like the Thursday and Sunday night practices, but overall I really enjoy playing trumpet and hope I continue to do it throughout my life,” Cieslikowski said.

Beneath his hardworking figure, Cieslikowski is “dedicated in everything he does,” senior Joey Hernandez said, “I can always rely on him.” The two have been very close friends since middle school, but their friendship started when they both participated in a gymnastics class when they were four-years-old.

“When I broke my arm earlier this year, he took my backpack from me without asking

so that it wouldn’t cause any more pain to my shoulder,” Hernandez said. ”He does incredible things without thinking about the attention he could receive.”

Hernandez is planning on going to Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Being less than two hours apart, Hernandez knows they will stay close friends no matter what.

Cieslikowski will be attending Yale University next year to study physics.

“I’ll definitely miss my friends when I go off to college, but I look forward to building new relationships,” Cieslikowski said.

He doesn’t know exactly what he wants to do when he gets older, but he does know that he wants to “make a difference and give back to the world,” Cieslikowski said.

Becoming this “passionate person,” according to Hernandez, Cieslikowski has had many role models along the way, including his mom. He says she has shown him how to stay strong when trying to “overcome poor odds.”

On a professional level, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, Elon Musk, has inspired Jeff to give back to his community and make a difference.

He says Musk is “passionate with mankind and strives to do the impossible.”

Some other role models who have pushed him to do his best over the years include Mrs. Chisholm and Mr. Grant.

“On a more personal level, Mrs. Chisholm and Mr. Grant have given me incredible aspirations and have helped me grow into a more confident person with my work,” Cieslikowski said.

Retiring Band Director Mr. Soucy has also given Cieslikowski the courage to try his best in school. In his opinion, Soucy has “helped him grow” as a student and person. He feels he has become more outgoing and friendly throughout the years.

“He was mature from the first time I met him,” Soucy said. “He was always one step ahead and could have started college his sophomore year. I put pressure on him because I knew he was able to handle it.”

Cieslikowski has a “pure heart” according to Hernandez and will always be an active member to Lancer Nation.

“This school has become my home these past four years, and it’s the one place where I feel comfortable. I’m going to miss it so much,” Cieslikowski said.

Photo courtesy of Joey Hernandez

Cieslikowski and his friend Joey Hernandez share smiles as they go on a trip in jazz band.

Photo courtesy of Jeff Cieslikowski

Mr. Soucy and Jeff Cieslikowski both attend their final band concert on May 16, 2018

Photo courtesy of Jeff Cieslikowski

Cieslikowski stands with his mother at the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, California, in January 2018.

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Photo courtesy of Jeff Cieslikowski

Cieslikowski will be attending Yale University in the fall and will graduate in the year 2022.

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Are test scores important?

Delaney Root

Maybe…

REPORTER

Whether it’s the SAT, ACT, or science NECAPS, high schoolers are subject to a multitude of standardized tests each year.

There is some debate about the importance of standardized testing. Some teachers will convince their students that scores do not matter, while others will tell students to try their best because it can affect their future.

Which of these statements is true? Are standardized tests as important as some people make them seem, or do they really not matter at all?

According to the College Board, test scores aren’t the most important part of getting into college, no matter which school it is.

Your grades, the classes you take, essays, and recommendations are much more fundamental.

Also, many colleges will allow you to choose the test scores that you send to them. So if you have to take the SAT three times in order to achieve a score you’re confident about, you might be able to forget about the first two attempts and only send colleges your highest scores.

Guidance counselor Mrs. Nelson says that test scores are simply “a piece of the puzzle.”

“Your transcript is really important,” Nelson said. “Even if you have a not-so-great freshman year, they want to see growth; they want to see improvement across all four years.”

Nelson also claims that colleges want to see that students are challenging themselves in classes and putting in effort. Letters of recommendation are also significant.

“The teachers can speak to how you are as a student in their class,” Nelson said. “You want to make sure you get a letter from a teacher who knows you, and knows what your strengths and weaknesses are.”

According to guidance director Mrs. O’Dea, many schools are willing to accept most students, so they don’t want to use standardized tests as “an additional barrier” for them.

O’Dea believes that test scores do not necessarily reflect a

person’s intelligence or how good of a student they are.

“In some cases the test scores can show how strong an academic student is as opposed to their course grades, and in other cases a student may do very well in school but not very well on tests,” O’Dea said.

Nelson agrees, but believes that students doing well in the classroom but not on tests “happens more often than not.”

Because of this, more and more colleges are beginning to look at being test-optional, which, according to Nelson, “is awesome.”

O’Dea, however, believes there are some benefits to these tests. After college, some students are required to take an exam to get into the field they want to study.

“I think utilizing standardized testing in high school is helping prepare students for this,” O’Dea said.

But there are some cases where colleges will focus on your test scores.

Competitive schools will definitely look at your SAT and ACT scores, which Nelson says are the most important tests.

“They’re going to want to see that you have strong scores because they’re looking for a really high, high level student,” Nelson said.

Another case where schools might want to see students’ scores is if they’re offering them scholarship money, such as merit aid. According to O’Dea, students are not eligible for merit aid if they don’t submit their standardized tests scores.

The two most widely used standardized tests, the SAT and ACT, used to be a little different than they are now.

According to O’Dea, the ACT was known as the Midwestern exam, because it is based out of Iowa, while the SAT was based out of New Jersey.

Colleges would be either an SAT or ACT school depending on their location. Since then, this has changed since students go to college all over the world.

Both Nelson and O’Dea agree that regardless of how much a test matters, students will stress about it.

“Standardized tests for students can be nerve-wracking and they shouldn’t be,” O’Dea said. “It’s a test taken on one day, do the best you can, but know that you have an opportunity from that test to be able to see where you need to work on.”

“In some cases the test scores can show how strong an academic student is as opposed to their course grades, and in other cases a student may do very well in school but not very well on tests,” O’Dea said.

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8

“I don’t think a couple tests should determine how your life is going to turn out.”

-Freshman Alanna Myron

“We have way too many tests.

I think it could be cut down.”

-Freshman Max Jean

“I feel like standardized testing is really useless because you just sit in a classroom for long periods of time just to be judged by people.”

-Sophomore Jillian Morani

What do you think about standardized testing?

“Standardized

testing shouldn’t be the main contributor for colleges, it should be like, if you did well, props to you.”

-Sophomore Samantha Heinrich

“I don’t really have a problem with [standardized testing] because I understand why, but I do wish the content would change so it is more applicable.”

-Sophomore Wade Dow

“Whether or not standardized test scores matter depends on your future.”

-Senior Dillon Sheehan

“If it’s a school that everyone gets into, test scores shouldn’t matter.”

-Senior Megan Maher

“[Standardized

testing] should still be thought of, but not as heavily as it is. It doesn’t show the best of our abilities because we didn’t learn some stuff on it.”

-Junior Zelda Owre

“I don’t think standardized testing really helps with getting into college at all.”

-Junior Olivia Garvey

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Carleigh McRitchie’s musical journey Photo by Christina McRritchie

Anna Drabik REPORTER The thatched roof and tiki-style of the Monkey La-La bar in Costa Rica welcome customers every Monday night for an open mic, and in February, freshman Carleigh McRitchie stepped up to the mic.

After performing a cover of Bon Iver’s “Skinny Love,” as well as a few of her original songs, McRitchie was loudly applauded for her performance.

“It was my first time performing for people with my guitar, so I was pretty nervous,” McRitchie said. “People were so supportive. The hotel was definitely for an older group, and they were so supportive for artists like me.”

McRitchie can also play piano and ukulele in addition to the guitar, however, she feels most comfortable with piano, as it’s what she’s “best at.”

“I just remember asking forever for piano lessons,” McRitchie said. “Growing up [my dad’s father] was a broadcaster and always into music and playing music, so [my dad] grew up loving music. I guess I got interested in music through him.”

At ten-years-old, McRitchie began taking singing lessons.

“I started singing because, growing up, I knew I wanted to become a performer and share music through my singing,” McRitchie said. “Begging for singing lessons when I was ten seemed like a good start.”

Since2018 then, McRitchie has continued to June

explore music, including writing and releasing two original songs on SoundCloud. One of those original songs, titled “Song For Me,” was written in two days and released in December of 2017. “‘Song For Me’ came to me when I was feeling like years were going past, and I couldn’t really remember much of what was going on in my childhood,” McRitchie said. “I just wanted to express how I felt about losing some of it into a song.”

McRitchie released her second song, “Human,” two months later.

“One of my friends is in a vulnerable state of not really knowing if they’re okay or not, so I wanted to make a song about how I could reassure her that, yes, there are human errors to a person, but they can be okay from those, and no one’s perfect,” McRitchie said. “‘Human’ is my favorite because of how many layers there are with the voices. The meaning behind it can be taken any way by different people.”

Like “Human,” “Song For Me” also features layered vocals, something inspired by McRitchie’s favorite music artist, Bon Iver.

“He is so different from classic rock, but he’s so inspirational to me,” McRitchie said. “He inspires me to write music. When I hear his music, I take ideas, but I don’t completely steal it; I take inspiration from it, from the different, weird harmonies he has to the instruments he uses.”

Up next, McRitchie will be participating in the New England Music Festival with a large band called Stagecraft, where she is a part of the vocal group. McRitchie says the festival is “stressful but a fun experience.”

McRitchie brought her guitar with her to Costa Rica to practice for this upcoming festival. Just like in Costa Rica, McRitchie also has supporters at LHS, one of whom is choir teacher Mrs. Loschiavo. “[Carleigh] is a hard worker, she’s creative, she has a beautiful voice, she encourages others, and she is not afraid to put her ideas down on paper and to perform for others, which is not always easy,” Loschiavo said.

Also supporting McRitchie is her best friend, freshman Amanda Curry.

“Since the first time I met her, she’s always been about music,” Curry said. “It’s super fun to see [Carleigh playing music] since she cares so much about it.”

Although she’s only 15-years-old, McRitchie plans to pursue a career in music, possibly even trying out for a singing competition, like American Idol or The Voice.

“Even if it’s not making it big, not becoming a career to sing for people, I’d still love to teach music to people because it’s so important in a life to have music; it’s a way of expressing yourself,” McRitchie said.

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cRitchie da e k y M o s zz n t a o i gu p ng i m i t r a t r s o Fr

les

s

Photo by Christina McRitchie

During an open mic, McRitchie plays a set at The Coffee Factory in Derry. McRitchie began playing piano at the end of third grade, for which she took lessons. She also took lessons for guitar, but not for ukulele.

Photo by Christina McRritchie Photo by Christina McRritchie

McRitchie performs at the Monkey La-La Bar at Hotel Pasatiempo in Tamarindo, Costa Rica.

According to McRitchie, the hotel was â&#x20AC;&#x153;perfectâ&#x20AC;? for her first guitar performance.

McRitchie jokes about how getting sick is her favorite thing to do before a competition at the 2016 New England Music Festival. This year, McRitchie will be shooting for her third win in the piano entertainment category.

lancerspiritonline.com

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REVIEW

Tim Gore REPORTER The Broadway revival of Once On This Island is performed on an island.

It’s not literally an island, but it’s pretty darn close. The show is performed in the round, which means the stage is in the center and the seats are all around the stage, looking down on it. The stage for this show (pictured below) is covered in sand, and there’s even a pool at one of the entrances which is used as the ocean.

Altogether, it creates an amazing effect.

With a show performed in the round, the actors don’t enter and exit very much. The

June 2018 Fair use photo

by Sara Krulwich

“ensemble”, for the most part, stays on stage as they help tell the story. They create special effects, set the mood, perform choreographed dances, and sometimes play different roles.

And the cast was fantastic. Many of the cast members are relative unknowns, which is cool, but there was also some Broadway and Hollywood royalty. For instance, Lea Salonga, whose credits include playing the voice of Jasmine in Aladdin and Mulan in Mulan, plays the goddess of love, Erzulie. And of course, the god of water (Agwe) is played by Norm Lewis, who has appeared in countless other Broadway productions as well as an off-Broadway production of Once on this Island in 1992.

But unlike some shows, it wasn’t the acting that made the show. It was a spectacle because of the way it was presented.

First of all, the choreography was seamless.

Their dances not only filled the stage (even with a very small number of people) but flowed into the story and the music. And it was performed well, too. Every cast member was able to distinctly portray their character while they were dancing.

I think the music was interesting. It had a very specific style, which was good because it tied into the story and its theme. There were no huge show-stopper numbers, but the songs generally included most of the cast.

While I couldn’t always understand the words, there was always really full sound, and it was amazing to hear.

And the music in general was very nontraditional. Typically, the characters reveal themselves and their personalities through solos and songs sung about themselves.

While these exist in Once on This Island, the characters are generally revealed more gradually, and rather than a solos, there are full cast numbers where the cast sings about another character’s life. This is very distinctive, and it sets this show apart from most Broadway shows.

Something else that was non-traditional was the way the story was told. See, another thing that makes Once On This Island unique is the aspect of a “story within a story”.

Basically, the premise of the musical is that a young girl is scared of a storm approaching the island, and the villagers tell her a story to calm her while the storm passes. This makes sense with the music style, because it’s not one character telling her story but rather other characters doing so.

This leads me to one of the very few criticisms I have. As I was watching it, I found it a little bit confusing at the beginning of the show to distinguish between what was actually happening and what was just the “story within a story”. However, as the show went on, it became much more clear.

I walked into Once On This Island not knowing what to expect, but it was one of the most amazing theatre productions I have ever seen, simply because it was so incredibly innovative and creative in its presentation.

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Arctic Monkeys

Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino Hannah Alback REPORTER

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Arctic Monkeys released their 6th album, Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, on May 11, 2018. They’ve been together since 2002 and dropped their first album in 2006, Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not. This band has been sorted into genres such as indie rock, garage rock, and post punk revival. Their recent hiatus from 2013-2016 made long-time fans nervous they wouldn’t return, but the announcement of the new album’s release on April 5, 2018 made them excited.

The album starts with “Star Treatment,” which is super relaxing. It doesn’t appeal to me too much because it’s not something to dance to or sing along to in the car; it’s more of a song that you listen to when you want to lay down and listen to music and do nothing else.

My favorite part of it is the reference to The Strokes, one of my favorite artists, in the

beginning. But everything else was just okay.

Next up is “One Point Perspective.” I noticed a theme withinHannah this album,Alback relaxation and downbeat tracks. At only two songs in, I’m REPORTER already bored of it. This song has an extremely similar sound to the first one, but I prefer “Star Treatment” over this.

“American Sports” has a different sound from the last two songs and it’s much more interesting to me. The song “Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino” would have to be my 3rd favorite on the album. I like the background music and this song has a good chorus too.

I love the intro of “Golden Trunks,” but the rest isn’t special. “Four out of Five” is a cool song too, but all of the songs are so similar that it’s hard to tell them apart if you’d shuffle the album and listen to it all; it all sounds like one continuous monotone song.

“The World’s First Ever Monster Truck Front Flip” and “Science Fiction” aren’t super unique in any way. But “She Looks Like Fun” has a different sound compared to the rest of the

Shawn Mendes’ self-titled album Anna Drabik REPORTER

Adding to his long list of achievements, and at only 19-years-old, folk-pop singer Shawn Mendes has released his third, self-titled album.

Released May 25, 2018, Shawn Mendes brings collaborations with Julia Michaels and Khalid, in addition to songwriting credits from Teddy Geiger and Ed Sheeran. Although Shawn Mendes perhaps borrows too heavily on its influences, such as Justin Timberlake and John Mayer, this self-titled record is definitely a step up from his two previous albums, Illuminate and Handwritten.

With some great moments on this record,it’s important to get the bad ones out of the way first.

“Where Were You in the Morning?” is the FOURTH single/track (I’ll get to that in a minute) on this record, in which Mendes details waking up alone after a one night stand.

Despite being one Mendes’s favorite tracks, it’s not one of mine; the guitar during the chorus is extremely overbearing and annoying, and the clapping feels unnecessary, along with the rolling beats. The most enjoyable part of this song is the ending.

“Fallin’ All in You” and “Because I Had You” sound like poorly-executed Ed Sheeran covers, which makes perfect sense for the former, as “Fallin’ All in You” was co-written by Sheeran himself.

With that said, the record starts off

particularly strong with “In My Blood,” “Nervous,” and “Lost in Japan.” Because I’ve already detailed my thoughts on “In My Blood” and “Lost in Japan,” I won’t be talking about them now, however, “Nervous” is definitely a favorite track of mine from this record.

An innocent song about having a crush, “Nervous” relies heavily on the bass as the driving force, something Mendes doesn’t tend to experiment with most of the time. The chorus has me bopping my head along as he practices his falsetto, and, though it doesn’t have much lyrical depth, it’s nice to see this side of Mendes before “Why.” My favorite from this release, “Why,” is a piano track with soft percussion. Though Mendes has stated he’s never been in love before, “Why” certainly seems contradictory to that. This track recounts an unspoken attraction between Mendes and some girl, as both of them know they have feelings for each other, but neither will admit it; Mendes tells of his frustration with their silence.

Verse two of “Why” identifies the mystery woman as a singer and songwriter, leading many fans to speculate the song was written about Camila Cabello. Rumors of the two dating are as old as their friendship, which began in 2015. Whether or not “Why” is about Cabello, this song is definitely my favorite song from Shawn Mendes.

Other songs that caught my attention (in a good way) include “Particular Taste,” “Queen,” and “Mutual.” I’ll be honest, as much as I enjoy “Particular Taste,” Mendes talks as if he has

4.5/10

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album. The electric guitars and varied vocal range add up to a really cool sounding song. This is one of the only songs that I could Fair Use Photo see myself actually adding to my playlist.

The track “Batphone” is just like the rest of the album and a step-back from how good track nine was. The only unique thing about “Batphone” is the small piano parts throughout the song.

Lastly, “The Ultracheese” is the sad love song that seems to appear in every album. This one isn’t basic and it’s actually nice. I find myself swaying to this song, and it’s calming. It is definitely one of the two songs I will revisit.

Overall, I prefer Arctic Monkey’s older music, such as their album AM. I don’t like most songs of this album, so I would rate it a 4.5/10.

7/10 to take a breath between each word he says; for example: This *pause* is *pause* my *pause* review *pause* of *pause* Shawn Fair Use Photo *pause* Mendes’s *pause* new *pause* album. It gets annoying after a few listens.

Joe Little brings some interesting production to the table on “Queen;” the handclaps and “oh-ah”s in the background work wonderfully with this track, unlike “Where Were You In the Morning?” On another note, “Mutual” is quite groovy, and it reminds me of the one-hit-wonder Alex Clare’s “Too Closet.” The brief heavy guitar at the end of the chorus confuses me and I don’t understand the point of it, but I do enjoy the cynical tone Mendes takes on with his voice.

As I mentioned previously, Mendes released multiple singles for this album, and, by multiple, I mean FIVE. Five singles is absolutely ridiculous. “In My Blood,” “Lost in Japan,” and “Youth,” featuring Khalid, were good for singles, but three is enough. Five singles is over 1/5th of the album, and is worth ~15:30 of the 44-minute record. To make it even worse, the singles weren’t even promoted enough to achieve success.

Overall, I’d say Shawn Mendes deserves its 7/10. I’m looking forward to what he’ll release in the future, and I’m excited to see him live on August 15, 2019,lancerspiritonline.com at Boston’s TD Garden.

The 18-19 Lancer Spirit Editorial Board Editor-in-Chief: Liz Iaconis Asst. Editor-in-Chief: Morgan Torre Sports Chief: Nick Desrosiers Magazine Chief: Tim Gore Online Chief: Kait Bedell Features Editor: Marissa McKay Features Editor: Amy Overhulser Opinions Editor: Juliana Hamel Opinions Editor: Katie Ehl Food Editor: Sean Cavanaugh Sports Editor: Blake Melnik Sports Editor: Zachary Malcolm A&E Editor: Anna Drabik Lifestyle: Jazz Conde Business Manager: Brian Boyle Creative Writing Editor: Rachel St. Louis Creative Writing Editor: Alyssa Neal Webmaster: Kat Provost Podcast Editor: Maxwell DesRosiers Broadcast Editor: Thomas Fougere Art Director: Myah Teague Design Editor: Eliana Patterson Photography Editor: Lilly Grodt Photo by Mrs. DeWinkeleer

Dear Lancer Nation, The seniors are graduating, retiring teachers are packing up their classrooms, juniors are celebrating the completion of their hardest year of high school, sophomores are getting ready to become upperclassmen, rising freshmen are getting excited to become Lancers next fall, and everyone is cramming for their final exams.

Soon though, we will all be relaxing in the summer sun on the beach, by the pool, on vacation with family or in town with friends. We’ll enjoy our time off, but it will fly by. Make the most of it because we’ll be back here roaming the halls of LHS before we know it.

We’re looking forward to a strong year for The Lancer Spirit and can’t wait for the opportunity to share your stories, your memories, your accomplishments, and your news with the community.

Sincerely, The Lancer Spirit Editors 2018-2019

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