Šimtadienis

By Lukas Z., Gr. 11 student

On Friday the 23rd of January, grade 12, or IB Year 2, took the Walk of Fame, a brief trip down the long corridor, on their way to the Sale, accompanied by half the school standing either side and clapping. This unusual turn of events was, of course, Šimtadienis.

Šimtadienis, literally meaning 'the one hundredth day', is a Lithuanian tradition, an indicator of how little time the final year has left, until entering the world of responsibility that is adulthood, something that might just unnerve many. For others, it is a good starting point to start their daily revision, leading up to the exams. Whatever the case may be, the day itself is usually a day of joy, one to fondly remember in the harsh times to come.

This year's theme was a 'disease' called Infectious Botramnesia (suspiciously short handed to 'IB'). The event was started off with a little play, depicting how various 'patients' dealt with their symptoms, with the help of a crew of (mostly) concerned physicians. From there, the event spiralled off into more a more interactive one, with the 12th graders being separated into groups and shipped off to different stations around the room.

Going clockwise, a group started with the Psychiatric division, where they had their creativity and emotional depth tested by being asked to portray specific emotions, while staying in character. Cycling to the next station, they had some time to relax in the Patient Lounge, where they conversed and had others perform their solitary hand gestures for them. Afterwards came the Traumatological division, where patients had their wounds bandaged and signed by well-wishing staff. At the last division, Surgical, they had to aide a patient who had inevitably succumbed to this new and virulent strain of IB, and had to entertain the surgeons by passing an apple between them (without the use of hands, naturally).

When the patients had moved through each of the stations, and came back with a clean bill of health, the nominations commenced. Each was given a bag of blood (origins unknown) with their own blood type on them. Amongst those were such gems as 'The Nihilist' or ‘The Perfume Princess', along with descriptions that in many cases summarized the recipients quite accurately (uncomfortably so at times).

In the last few minutes, the teachers stepped up, and gave their rendition of various students, in various daily scenarios, portraying the students with an uncanny accuracy. When asked about the event, an anonymous 12th grader summed it up quite nicely: “It was great.”