L ife in the IC
Sometimes, our days need brightening as we deal
with the rigours of the IB together. The material gets
a lot more complex than in IGCSE, and time becomes
a precious resource as coursework deadlines tighten.
Quite a few of us do similar subject combinations,
so we go through the difficult parts of our course
together. Subjects like SL English tend to agitate
everyone in the house – the moments of deepest
regret for choosing the IB seems to coincide with
the return of English essays. Yet the best part about
living in a boarding house is our ability to collaborate
on work with our friends. Midnight discussions on
German Unification can sometimes be as productive
as lessons. Problem sets get handed round, and the
doors of our resident Maths geniuses get streams of
uninterrupted visits around exam period.
It’s not all stress and coursework though. We go on
trips for an inter-year paintball fight and go-karting.
We have inside jokes, musical evenings and cooking
clubs. Saturday afternoons are spent laughing in the
kitchen with great food cooked by Mrs Owen. I might
be an optimist, but one great thing about gloomy
British weather is how much you appreciate it when
the weather is nice. The big windows in IC are perfect
for watching the sky shade a million different types of
turquoise, rose and amethyst as the sun sets.
September is always an odd time for the IC. Beneath
its red-brick exterior are 28 new boys from all over
the world, replacing those whose only remains are
name tags on the world maps across the house.
We’re total strangers initially, and this is compounded
by how different we seem at first. There are obvious
signs, like somebody’s accent or tendency to swap
into a different language with no warning, but also
details like how they like their eggs done, or how
often they make instant noodles. Yet we quickly
become inseparable. Our bond manifests in the
chants we shout at inter-house events, the colour
schemes of our clothes and in the conversations and
laughter that make our days a little brighter.
74
BOARDING
There have been a few constants throughout my IC
experience. Dr and Mrs Owen are one of them. We’re
normal teenage boys – we have problems all the
time, and they’ve always been willing to listen and be
there for us when we need them. There are very few
people I trust as much as my parents, and I count my
housemaster and housemistress among them.
Usually, when your children leave, parents suffer
from a little bit of empty nest syndrome, but I know
Doc O will be busy with 28 new strangers from all
over the world. I also know that if I ever missed my
time in boarding life, I could always go through the
tunnel, up the hill and across the field to that (really
big) red-brick house that I will always call my home.
Yuan Wong, Upper Sixth
SPOR T