I, Britt Alphson, can say—and I think I speak for a majority of kids here—that the expectations for Retreat Week are never excited or hopeful. Most kids, including myself, groan how we would rather stay home and watch Donald Trump’s campaign (I’m being incredibly sarcastic, obviously). We’d actually watch Bernie Sander’s campaign. No, I’m kidding, we’d all just watch Netflix and pretend we’re all Blairs instead of sad little Dorotas.

But I can also assure you that all those kids come back from retreat knowing it changed their relationships with their classmates for ever more (or at least for a couple years). There’s something about throwing kids together in the wilderness (Ojai- I know, us juniors truly roughed it) or on a questionably rustic rockwall that really brings them together.

The Retreat Team and the teachers advising worked especially hard this year, and it noticeably paid off in how incredibly well Retreat Week was received.

The freshmen got to bond with their new classmates through Fulcrum ice-breakers and dance parties. As Sadie Chandler ’19 put it, “It was a great way to get to know my new classmates and hang out with different people. I loved climbing on the rock wall.”

The sophomores got to leave campus (gasp) and go serve their community through working with Heal the Bay. The rock wall also made an appearance while sophomores went and visited the various activities available to them at the Fulcrum Site. Ally Mallouk ’18 , a Retreat Leader, stated that “It was fun and I think all our preparation really paid off. It was exciting to go on the rock walls.”

My eleventh grade class and I went to Ojai and spent a couple unforgettable days at a camping site over there. As Victoria Daly ’17 said, “Our class really came back more bonded than we did after any other retreat.” From dance parties to roasting s’mores, we all had a great time. Oh, and of course we climbed a rock wall. Couldn’t be a Marymount retreat without a rock wall.

The seniors had their very last retreat at the Serra Retreat Center in Malibu. “It was pretty laid-back,” said Claire Burgess ’16. Tiffany Capalleri ’16 said, “The highlight of the trip was definitely watching Sky High together.”

Overall, Retreat Week was well-planned and executed. I think Retreat is deeply important for how a class bonds. With only four years of high school, it can be incredibly easy to stay with a certain group of friends and never expand yourself to all the other awesome kids surrounding you. Retreat is a way for you to do that, and I think everyone appreciates that.