WRITTEN BY ALLISON MEYER

Valentine’s Day Celebration 2/14
Valentine’s—quite a controversial holiday. For the hopeless romantics it is a day to celebrate their relationships of any kind, and for the skeptics it is a day of blatant commercialism. But, for those who don’t know, as the stories vary, Valentine’s day actually has very real roots. The day originated from Ancient rome. During that time period Emperor Claudius II decided that marriage should be outlawed, justifying his decision with the claim that single soldiers were more focused and thus fought better. When a local priest, Valentinus, heard of the news, he decided that he would help young couples get married in the secrecy of the church. When the emperor found out, Valentinus was sentenced to death. However, in the time he spent imprisoned, he fell in love with his jailer’s daughter. The two would exchange letters, to which Valentinus would always sign “From your valentine”. While we may no longer write letters, Valentines is still celebrated to appreciate our relationships, be it between friends or dates.

Valentine’s Day was celebrated by KAS with a joyful spirit. Single or coupled up, all of us can agree that love was truly in the air. While there was no official event or dance dedicated to the day, the Invisible Children’s club held their annual balloon fundraiser that has become a long-held tradition at KAS when it comes to the day of celebrating love. The entire day was coloured red that on the way to lunch, it was almost impossible to recognize the path to Dining Hall over the sea of hearts. Remnants of the day and the toothy grins that accompanied it have been since plastered on feeds for safekeeping of such pleasant memories.

This campaign allowed students to buy gifts for their special someone, all the while helping Cambodian children suffering from Domestic Violence. The balloons sold for 40 each, with every sixth coming free. The club triumphantly raised 26700 NT in total—nothing short of complete success.

Cadenza Performance 3/16
We would like to praise Cadenza for their amazing Mid-March performances. If you missed it, the theme for this performance was International Day—a day to celebrate your ethnicity, your race, your religion, and ultimately, who you are. A more underlining and subtle message is “equality” and “empowering of individuals”—in line with GIN club’s recent message of feminism and equality for all. Back on the subject of performances, all the songs were sung in different languages by artists around the world. The remarkable performance showcased a new side of Cadenza that we were honoured to witness. According to Cadenza member Tanzanite Chen, who performed the number Precious by Esperanza Spalding, she hoped that the students not only enjoyed the performance, but left feeling empowered.

Spring Fling – Life’s a Beach 3/24
Moving into March, the Student Council has recently announced an upcoming dance to gear up for spring break. It will also be the first dance of this new semester and hopefully will inspire more involvement and excitement towards our incoming spring holiday.

The official date of the dance, hosted at a beachside resort by Xiziwan, is March 23rd, which is the friday before spring break. This beachside venue is a fresh change to school dances, and has far exceeded the expectation of students. As student council secretary Anna Thiel, Sophomore, put it “If you come early enough you might even see the sunset”. The prices range from $750 for couples, $800 for singles, and $850 for on the spot purchases. For those apprehensive about the seemingly high cost, the majority of proceeds will be donated towards the Wonder Woman Campaign’s Garden of Hope campaign.

Hopefully news of this dance powers us all through our midterms and summative assessments, and kickstarts spring break into high gear.