On 17th August, 2017 the High School joined together with the PYP 6 students to celebrate Indonesian Independence Day. We began the day with a wonderful and inspiring flag ceremony to honour the traditions and history on this, the 72nd birthday of Indonesia.

Following the flag ceremony students and teachers alike celebrated further with many traditional games and activities. Inspired by the events of the day, two students from our 10th grade class wrote an account that perfectly captures the fun and excitement enjoyed by all. Please read on and relive the day through their eyes.

Bret Olson
High School Principal

Independence Day Games

As the crystal blue waves crash over the sandy beaches, the Blue Middle team poured over the High School field with smiles and soaring spirits, ready to wash away the competition in the first game of the day. Spoons and marbles were set with white lines glowing on the emerald grass as the teacher explained the rules of the classic game, balancing a marble with a spoon in your mouth. When the game started, cheers and shouts instantly erupted as Blue Middle students walked from the length of the field with a spoon in their mouths and a marble dancing on the spoon. With teamwork and patience, we somehow were able to balance our way to victory!

When we arrived at our next stop, we were greeted with bouncing balloons and colourful cones shining on the ground. In this game, groups of five had to bring a balloon from one side of the lane to the other without using their hands. Throughout the game, we were bursting with laughter and creativity as we came up with new and sillier ways to bring the balloon to the other side without hands!

After being under the burning sun, we finally went inside the MPH to play Tissue Toss where we had to toss a tissue around without using our hands. The game was frustrating. Tossing even one tissue felt like chasing clouds, only being left empty-handed when we thought we had finally caught one. Exasperation grew thicker every second the tissue was in the air, however, we strived with confidence to toss as many tissues as we could to each other.

After minutes of frustration and fun, the Blue Middle team went back outside, sweat trickling down our foreheads under the sun as we played a relay version of Sack Race. It was tough, we would trip here and there but with the help from our teammates, we were able to pick ourselves up and hop to success!

Tug of war, unlike the other events, was an event met with mixed emotions. Noting our opponents, we felt as if this was the one event we were bound to lose. a�?Believe in yourself,a�? we said, at that time feeling like they could end up as empty words. We maya��ve be going down, but we werena��t going down with a mere whimper. We gripped the ropes, our knuckles turning ghost white, and prepared to fight. The rope was pulled, shoes were skidding against the ground, and somehow, some way, it moved in our favour. The marker moved, closer and closer, until finally, victory was ours! Faith and teamwork lent us not only one victory, but two.

As it came to be, wea��d already had our snack break at that point but there was always room for more, no? And so came the Kerupuk Challenge, where we had to eat as fast as our stomachs would allow us. By now, morale was low, along with our energy. But like the unrelenting ocean our house is modelled after, we continued and through sheer will, won yet again by the skin of our teeth (which, admittedly, felt as if theya��d been sawed off)!

Alas, the games had ended and we were all a puddle of sweat. The moment we were waiting for had come; the tension in the air became thicker every passing second, the closer we got to the announcement of the house competition results, the faster and louder our heartbeats were, like the sound of the waves crashing on the shore. A mixture of pessimistic and hopeful thoughts were in the air,
a�?Do you think wea��ll be in 4th place?a�?
a�?I think we can actually win thisa�?
The air of thoughts and questions was all that we could breathe in.

As if a dam broke, the MPH was flooded with cheers and shouts from one corner of the room. With unbreakable smiles and lively spirits, Blue House filled the MPH with their boisterous cheers, powerful enough to break the sound barrier. Why? Because on that day – Thursday, 17th August, 2017- the Blue House brought home 1st place for Sekolah Ciputraa��s Indonesian Independence Day Games. Blue House strives for victory like the endless sea always returning to the shoreline, never stopping to reach it no matter how far it was sent away.

By: A�Tevya and Dara: Year 10, Blue House