CAPTAIN'S CORNER

Dear St. Margaret's friends and families,

Each spring I am awed by the power of the traditions that prepare the members of our school community for the new roles they will assume next fall. We began the month with Spring Family Weekend and will end it with Commencement, two weekends which hold ceremonies that have evolved over the years, but which have always been a part of our heritage. On these two weekends, the pictures really do speak louder than the words! From my years of visiting alumnae, I know how many nearly identical photos live in the albums of our graduates and their families. The lanterns and the flowers stay the same, only the hairdos change!

What is this magic mix of tradition and innovation that we enjoy today? I am happy to report that the eighth graders dancing around the May Pole have been replaced by the physics students launching rockets they built themselves. The full May pageant presented on the river lawn, which required weeks of preparation and practice, is now a multi-sensory experience, in the same location, but under a magnificent white tent. Faculty challenged students to a crew regatta. Families shared lunch on the lawn, studied portraits drawn by faculty and student artists of each senior, and listened intently as the school community honored the seniors with a series of meaningful presentations-a song from Soulful Voices, words of wisdom from a senior faculty member, reminiscences from their class sponsors (both SMS alums!), a poem written just for them by our nationally acclaimed poet/art teacher, and gifts from their junior lantern sisters. Finally, there was the crowning of the May Queen and her Maid of Honor, two girls elected by the students, faculty, and staff because they represent the values we hold highest.

On Saturday night, May Ball is still the highlight of the school year, more elegant now that it has moved from the gym to the river lawn. I must confess that I no longer inspect the girls' dresses ahead of time as some of my predecessors did. I've always been impressed with the elegance and poise of the young women in long white dresses, carrying bouquets of daisies, as they gather on the front steps of St. Margaret's Hall, like generations before them, for their class photo. I do see more parents on the dance floor these days, but maybe that's because the bands have mastered the art of combining the traditional with the new as well!

Transitions involve both letting go and leaping forward, and our traditions mark these changes. I'm glad to have these traditions, for not only do they mark life's mileposts, but they also provide a place to hold all of the emotions these transitions inspire. The pictures say it all!

Sincerely,
Margaret R. Broad,
Head of School

COMPASS POINTS

21 - Installation of 2003-04 leaders, Spring athletic luncheon

23 - Junior/senior banquet

23-25 - Closed weekend

26-30 - Final exams

30 - Academic awards banquet

31 - Commencement

6-8 - Reunion weekend