Swim Season Gallery 2020
Swimming the 100 meter Freestyle, Alyssa Young (11) catches her breath.
The Setbacks Make for a Better Comeback
Kylee Long puts on her swim cap before her first race.
It was around a year ago student Kylee Long’s life was forever changed. What was thought to be just another hunting trip turned out to be so much more. Long suffered an accidental gunshot to her right leg that resulted in a month spent in the UPMC Altoona hospital and the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
“They had to amputate above the knee because they didn’t have enough to keep my knee joint,” said Long.
She was released from the hospital on December 20, 2018, and, ever since that, has adjusted to her new way of life. Long had hoped to return to the soccer field this season, but ended up finding a new interest in the pool.
“I was looking for something to keep me in shape,” Long said. “I was talking to a swimmer who recommended coming to pre-season and trying it out.”
After attending the first pre-season training, Long had an interest in swimming and decided to join the team.
“I’ve really gotten the hang of each individual stroke,” said Long. “My favorite stroke is for sure [the] freestyle.”
Long has really enjoyed learning all the new strokes and getting to know her new teammates. She was even chosen to be a captain of the team.
“Kylee works so hard and is always cheering her teammates on,” said Coach Heckman. “She really deserved the position, she is a great role model.”
Long’s goal is to improve all of her times by the end of the season. She always speaks about how thankful she is for all the support she gets from family and friends. After only a year, Long hopes to keep pushing her limits with her new way of life.
“It’s been a wild ride,” said Long. “I can’t believe it’s been a year since my accident, but the love and support has been endless through my good and bad times.”
Beware of the Ides of March
There are countless superstitions in which people around the world believe. Some are knock on wood, black cats or birds, Friday the thirteenth, et cetera. There is one superstition that is known for this month: the Ides of March, or March 15. This superstition comes from the events surrounding historical leader Julius Caesar. Throughout March, Mr. Troy Hillwig (Faculty) and his 6/7 period students read the play The Tragedy of Julius Caesar to celebrate the Ides of March.
The play, Julius Caesar, was written by William Shakespeare. According to History.com, this term comes from the “ominous warning from the smoothsayer telling Caesar to not go to the capital.” Nowadays, March 15 is known as a solemn day filled with a negative connotation. Patrick Hicks (10) and Kylee Long (10) do not believe in the Ides of March.
“I think for story-telling purposes that the Ides of March are unlucky for Julius Caesar because it works as a plot device,” Hicks said. “But in general I don’t have any superstitious feelings about the Ides of March.”
“If I lived back then [during Julius Caesar’s time period] maybe I would have believed in the Ides of March, but not really now.” Long said.
Compared to the students, Hillwig has a different opinion on the Ides of March.
I love the Ides of March. In fact, it’s a good day to have a party. I buy into it because that was when Caesar was killed.”
— Mr. Hillwig
William Shakespeare’s writing is more traditional than the writing students are used to today. According to Shakespeare Online, Shakespeare wrote comedies, histories, and tragedies. Julius Caesar is a tragic story about how Julius Caesar “fell” from power. To Hicks, Julius Caesar is pretty easy to follow along.
“Julius Caesar is a very interesting story and overall I enjoy it. So far, I like in Act II the speech that Brutus gave about why Caesar must be overthrown and I think it is very powerful,” Hicks said.
There are students who catch on to stories and plays very easily, but for Long, it took some time to comprehend.
“I think that it is kind of confusing, but so far, it has been okay because Mr. Hillwig explains it very well and I think that most of the people in class are getting it,” said Long. “My favorite part in the play is when Cassius was explaining to Brutus why he should battle Julius Caesar for his power.”
To Hillwig, Julius Caesar is very detailed with it’s difficult language. He said that Shakespeare challenges everybody, including his Honors students. “I like for the Honors classes to be able to really analyze and detail the play and it is something that hopefully makes them think about the language and Shakespeare and have a better understanding of the play.”
