La Rochelle Yearbook 2023

Message from the Deputy Head Girl

Keep living out your values. Keep trying. Even if you are sitting here now, feeling misunderstood or invisible, you are seen. I see you.

loudly and as unapologetically as you can. To the Student Council: Thank you for always showing up, for serving as an example of what a Larrie should be, and most importantly, for leading with your hearts. Without empathy

sweet dreams, while you need to finish Maths and Science homework, as well as write that mondeling . You are tired and cold, and almost ready to close those books and face the heat in tomorrow’s lesson. But then you walk through those double doors, smell two-minute noodles

and compassion, we as people conform to robots. You have led with heart, soul, courage and kindness. Thank you for your selflessness, sacrifice, commitment and positivity. I know that all of you will go on to achieve so much more and move so many hearts with your beaming personalities. To the Choir: It was my privilege to represent you this year. Thank you for your dedication and commitment to the music we made. Never stop singing. It is so much more than a couple of notes. It is magic. It is story telling. It is talent. It is communication. Sing loudly. Sing everywhere. Sing with heart and intent. You allow people to feel things that can never be expressed with spoken words alone. That is a gift. Carry it with you wherever you may go, and never let it go. I will forever hold your voices near to my heart. To the Con Spirito , my family: We made magic of our own this year. And while Sir rubbed us up the wrong way most of time, you made it so incredibly worth it. Our performance of ‘ Horizons ’ in Stellenbosch still gets me teary till this day. It was not that we were perfect or that that was the best we had ever sung the song. It is the fact that at that moment, I thought about how far we had come. About how special what we do actually is. About the fact that we put our everything into every performance, not only for the audience, ourselves, Sir or even the music, but for one another. You are a phenomenal group of women. Thank you for allowing me to make history with you. I will miss the Con Spirito with every fibre of my body, but our sisters in line need their time to shine as well. And so I will proudly say, not goodbye, but see you later. I wish next year’s group the best of luck. To Zenade, Lex, Blom, gang gang . You made high school a breeze . Not a day went by where I felt that there was no-one to turn to. Thank you for never leaving me, not even in my lows. Thank you for the silly moments, the eventful weekends at the hostel, the deep conversations, hugs, support, love and understanding. Wherever life may take you, I will be thinking of you and cherishing all that you mean to me. Take life by the hand and conquer. To the Grade 8s: Daisies, towards the end we became rather lazy with the greeting, but we will work at that. Thank you for being such a vibrant, passionate group. I wish you all the best for the rest of your high school careers. Participate, be involved, make memories, make mistakes and learn as much as you can from as many people as you can. Make a name for yourselves, because you are just as much part of this family as anyone. You all belong here. Do not underestimate yourselves. Chin

and coffee and see the people who effortlessly brighten up your day. And whether it was stealing pretzels from Jody, skarreling for a bowl and a fork for the noodles, first having a catch-up session before you tackle the studies, or having a cry on that couch that manipulates you almost always into falling asleep during your five-minute ‘break’ – one thing is certain; you kept me from throwing in the towel. We often joked and said those seats should have our names engraved on them; but I think they already do. While we joked around more than we should have some nights, I am extremely proud of our dedication, commitment and endurance. No matter how tired, no matter how late and no matter how much we still had to do, we always showed up. The memories we made in that TV room will stay with me forever. Then we blinked, and it was Matric. We quickly found that that meant more than Daisies, pearls and yellow ribbons; more than walking through a door first and more than wearing a matric jersey. No, it also entailed leadership, hard work, patience, commitment and tenacity. We may have slipped up here and there, but that is to be expected. There is no guide to being the leaders of the school. No ‘how-to’ pamphlet on becoming successful mentors, examples to the rest of the school, knowing how to deal with the increasing stress, pressure, anxiety and responsibilities which await you. You simply try and try and then try again, until you raise yourself to the task, something I feel we have all done this year. Matrics, we may not have always seen eye to eye on many things. We had our ups and then a couple of downs too. But we are bonded in the fact that we walked into this place together, and we will walk out together as well. Bonded in the fact that as long as we are within these walls, we live by the same values and represent the same institute. Bonded in the fact that no matter our background, culture or religion, we are under one roof to say farewell to this journey that we have experienced alongside one another for the past five years. Bonded in the fact that where spirit was needed, spirit was delivered. Where pride was required, pride was over flowing from our hearts. Thank you. It was truly an honour being part of this group of intelligent, powerful, kind-hearted, youthful and talented women. I know you will all go on to do amazing things after school, and I wish you nothing but the best wherever your paths may lead you. Stay true to what you believe in, discover who you truly are and be yourself as

22 LAR

La Rochelle Hoër Meisieskool | Girls’ High School