Notes from
Cardigan Cardigan Mountain School R.F.D. 2, Box 58 Canaan, New Hampshire 03741 603-523-4321
March 1987
Many parents attend sports events at Cardigan, but few have been fortunate enough to see our Broombal I players in action. This wintertime activity has been kept pretty quiet, but could well turn out to be the secret weapon of the future. It's played on the ice, using half the length of a hockey rink, and has a regulation goal at each end. Players are equipped with a short-handled broom, the bristle end of which has been wrapped securely with duct tape. Regulation gear includes a helmet for protection against falling on the ice. Not skates, but sneakers are worn on the feet. The ice must be smooth without cracks or skate marks. A soccer ball is used instead of a puck. Otherwise, it 1 s just like hockey; players face off, hit the ball with the broom and try to get it past the goalie into the goal. Another difference is that sneakers don't act like skates on ice; they provide absolutely no traction. The motion of swinging the broom and hitting the ball is frequently enough to put a player off balance and off his feet. Try to imagine ten players slipping wildly on the ice trying to get a whack at a rolling ball, and you can imagine the chaos that ensues. It is a game in which no one has an advantage by virtue of expe ri ence or skill. It's a hilarious spectator sport; perhaps we should feature it next year for Parents' Weekend . It's a rare moment when $36,000 worth of new equipment arrives on this campus and creates scarcely any excitement. It was painted green with white lettering on the side, had the usual number of wheels, tires, windows and doors, and although it was a little larger, could hardly be distinguished from the old one. Practically, however, it was great to have the new bus, and it was put into service immediately. When ski Holiday finally arrived on February 27th, it was a grand sight to see the procession leaving campus. Two green Cardigan busses, two rented ye llow busses, and four vans - filled with the entire student body, most of the faculty, several faculty wives, and an incredible variety of skis, poles, snowboards, etc. got under way about 8:30 a.m. heading for Loon Mountain. Skiing this Winter has been the best in years, and on that date snow conditions were ideal and it was one of the warmest, sunniest, most spectacularly beautiful days of the whole season. We thought to have the slopes to ourselves, but word did get out about the weather and quite a number of people managed to start their weekend early with a day on the slopes. Let's say, it was crowded. That didn't detract one bit from the fun; no one came home on a stretcher, and it was a beautiful day in New Hampshire! We love Winter! By the end of February, however, we can admit that it's getting a bit long, and any kind of diversion i_s welcome. From two of our creative faculty members came an inspiration: Midw inter Doldrums Games 1987 - a giant game of 11 Trivial Pursuit 11 played in the theatre with the whole school participating. From our intramural Green and White teams, a Captain and 20 players were chosen. A member from each team took his place at the table behind the green line and listened to the question read by Mr. Hart. The first one to grab the glass from the table had first chance to answer. If his response was incorrect, the other player had to try. A wrong answer put that player out, and the next in line took his place. A variety of 11 official II rules were pronounced by Mr. Hart to fit developments as they arose: undue delay" (grabbing the glass first then trying to think of the answer) was a two point penalty. An extra point could be earned by answering the question before he had finished reading it. 11
How did the rest of the school participate? You can imagine that from an audience of 140 boys, all listening eagerly to each question, there were several who knew the answer and could hardly restrain themselves from helping the contestants. 11 A wrong answer drew an instant chorus of Oh, no! 11 Hesitation called for 11 encouragement: "Come on, you know that! Occasionally a question puzzled everyone, and the stunned silence seemed to intimate: 11 How could anyone be expected to know that? 11 It was ultimately ruled that if an answer could be heard clearly from the crowd, the question would be put aside and no points scored or lost. When time was finally cal led, the Green Team had prevailed 15-13. It was a great game! Preparing young people to face the world of the future - their world - is the constant challenge of education. In addition to factual basics, it's important to cha I lenge young minds to reach for an understanding of moral issues with which they must grapple on an individual basis. Two such issues have recently been raised. A group called 11 Freedom from Chemical Dependency 11 spent three days on campus meeting with small groups of students and faculty raising questions about one's right to say NO, about resisting peer pressure, about being in command - taking charge of one's own body and mind and future. Even young minds can realize that every act has a consequence, and that it is possible to consider end results before plunging headlong into new adventures. A more difficult concept is that global issues can be effected by individual attitudes. A speaker from the BEYOND WAR movement started with the premise that because the consequences of nuclear war threaten the survival of life on this planet, all of us, as world citizens, need to consider the radical notion that conflict can be resolved without violence. The idea is no less challenging or revolutionary to us than it is to our children. We can, perhaps, hope that nuclear destruction will not come in our lifetimes; but this rationalization is not valid for the young. They need to find a way to look at the future without the pessimism that total oblivion is inevitable. Embracing the preservation of the whole world in our individual thinking and actions may be the essence of ending conflict and building a world beyond war. The last weekend on campus before the start of Spring vacation can be tough. Winter term has ended, grades have been computed and turned in, the new term has started but not much new work has begun, and daydreaming about vacation plans is well underway. Under these circumstances, interest in the usual weekend activities can be lacking. This year we had a tremendous surprise from the weather; the wdrm front which moved into our area on Friday brought late April temperatures to campus. The effect of warm days in the north country is universal - everyone rushes outdoors with a great sense of relief to break the spell of cabin fever which is a common malady by the end of February. Boys in shorts and tee shirts were a common sight - made unusual only by the piles of snow still rema1n1ng. Additionally the long-heralded DANCE actually took place, and the culmination of eight weeks of effort by the Performing Arts group was the production of II Little Shop of Horrors". All Saturday afternoon the dance committee worked decorating the dining room for the Dance of the Decades - 50 1 s and 60 1 s. Posters of the Beatles and Marilyn Monroe were resurrected, and the general decor was after the manner of American Bandstand. The girls arrived in time for the play. After the final curtain call, it was time to start dancing. The weather, the play, the girls, the II last weekend 11 - al I combined to make a very enjoyable and pleasant evening. It is most unusual to be able to do a play that is still running on the professional circuit, and one of the successes of the current season. A lot of people contributed their skills, time and effort to meet the production challenges of this show, and their efforts, combined with those of an enthusiastic, willing and able cast, resulted in one of the best pl ays we've s een here in year s. Eac h of t he three performance s was unique; Friday afternoon one of the girls lost her wig at a crucial moment; Saturday night the temperature got so high in the theatre that it repeatedly set off the fire alarm causing a temporary interruption of lhe show; when thi s had been corrected, the cast picked up where they lefl arr and continued wilh great professionalism . The leading man h ad almost lost his voice by the final show but made up for it by the best dramatic performance he had ever done. Monday it was classes, more or less as usual, and VACATION! Have a wonderful and enjoyable holiday with your sons.