Last Friday, in a little corner on the patio of Good Harbor Grill, I sat with Sara House, a Leelanau student who started her freshman year and will be a senior this fall. I’ve been wanting to write a blog for a while about making the most of a Leelanau experience, and I realized that our students are the ones who have the most valuable insights! Sara will give you her unfiltered scoop on thriving at Leelanau, plus some other tasty tidbits. Buckle up, we’re about to hear about orange juice concentrate, zombie fish, and The Devil Wears Prada!

Kate: If someone were coming to Leelanau, what’s your advice on how to make the most of the experience?

Sara: My number one piece of advice that I always have given to every single student regardless of anything about them is to just make sure that you don’t get sidetracked about who you are. You have to keep checking in with yourself: Is this how I want to behave? Do I feel good about how I’m working towards who I want to be? And is this okay and just a learning experience or is this out of the ordinary? And that’s just one of those things where you can’t sugarcoat something about yourself or give anyone a false pretense.

Do you have any specific advice for making the most of your academic experience?

The reason I led with the interpersonal connection is that you have to have a healthy way about yourself and your life in order to even consider concentrating on your academics. And I learned that quite quickly because as soon as I realized, “Hold on, I’m not benefiting from how I’m doing this. It’s a good experience and I love it, but it’s not at its maximum capacity.” I just needed some mental clarity to make it so.

And after the mental clarity, how did that change?

I just kind of skyrocketed. I started therapy my sophomore year and that helped alleviate a lot off myself, and got it out of my mind. Suddenly I just got really strong in my junior year. The first thing my mom said to me last fall was, “Listen, Sara, I’m not about to make this the entire thing about what I’m going to hound you on, but you need to rock your junior year.” And I did!

And what did you rock last year?

I rocked my time management, my accountability. I utilized every single study hall I could and then some. I would stay after classes and through dinner, sometimes even skipping dinner–which I knew wasn’t the best–but I could always make a sandwich or ramen. I just knew I had to get things done. The second I got back to my room was the kiss of death for me. I learned to not put things off! If you have the moment to do it and you’re already doing it, you have to just push through it, and for me, that’s just one of those things. You think, well, I should treat myself, but treat yourself while still getting through your project. It was finding that balance.

So you rocked junior year academically for sure, but what are you proud of beyond your junior thesis?

I think I’m proud of the way I handled social situations. I usually wasn’t good at that and this year I was just kind of like, “Listen, just be kind.” It’s time for me to be more secure with myself so that I can be that person. And it works! That’s the thing about habits that I’ve learned. You cannot just stop a habit. You have to replace it with another habit. And that goes for anything. It goes for being a kinder person, it goes for physical addiction and mental addiction, it goes for treating yourself and others with respect and just being a good person. 

What supports at Leelanau specifically have been most important to you to become this person you’re proud of?

House parents are just wonderful. I know that they always tell you that your house parents are there to support you and help you and that you can talk to them. And it sounds kind of frivolous at first, like “Okay I’m never going to do that.” But I totally did. And I think that they were really grateful that I was one of those people who wasn’t afraid to ask for help. When I was trying to finish up my work, I would sit in the common room because sitting in my room just wasn’t going to work ever. And by sitting in that common space, people were walking in and out checking on me and it became easier to ask for help. I’m an extrovert and being around people makes me happy–I love people.

With house parents, talking about things I needed help with became easy. I struggled with keeping my room clean because I could get so overwhelmed sometimes, but Kelsey Barnes, oh my gosh, she was just always there. Schafer, she keeps it real. Mr. Lipscomb? He gives the best hugs. And Eisenstat is just wonderful. You think she’s scary, but if you’re just like, “Hey, I need to talk to someone,” she’ll literally be there in 3 minutes. And it’s another thing on her plate but she doesn’t mind.

So you’ve really been focusing on residence life, including house parents and the social aspects, but what about the academic day is most helpful?

Tutorial. We always talk about Tutorial. Everyone talks about Tutorial and that’s because it’s just wonderful. It’s wonderful to stay the extra minutes after class so that you don’t have this almost-finished thing sitting in your binder. And then your teacher will be like, “Do you need help? Do you need extra minutes? What do you need? Do you need an empty room, do you need people in this room to keep you accountable?” And I’m just like, “Mrs. Blondia I love you,” and then I get to pack up my stuff in an organized way after class because I have 20 minutes, and I get to keep my binder neat. 

And that’s true. I think about my high school where we had 3 minutes 45 seconds passing time between classes. And so you’d have to go to your locker, change your books, or if your next class was far you’d have to carry everything and plan ahead. And if you had to go to the bathroom, my goodness!

Yeah, I had a little of that in middle school. That’s stressful! 

How are Leelanau teachers different?

I was just going to talk about that! So, obviously, there is the structure of the classes. They’re really long classes, but you don’t want to leave.

You don’t want to leave your classes? I love that!

Giving tours, I realized that kids might be shied away from 75-minute classes instead of 45 minutes to an hour, but I need to let them know that it’s a good hour and 15 minutes. And it lets the teachers relax and go on tangents that teach us way more than the state of Michigan ever could. Mr. Blondia feels comfortable talking about his time at Upjohn and his sister’s job and how that place relates back to this thing in class and how this thing impacts the environment and how some companies are good and some aren’t and how these companies could literally do this thing to help the environment with literally just this much money… And he shares his frustration instead of just teaching us facts in a monotone voice.

It sounds like teachers share pieces of their own lives, their families, and their pets. And it’s not weird?

No, it’s not weird at all! Some people who aren’t used to it might be like, “What?” but it’s wonderful. The Island School class was only because Mr. Blondia knew about it because of this one thing and this other person and this person told him about it and he was like, “Oh I’ll visit there.” And then he went. And then suddenly however many years later, he’s taking our class to this place and we learn how they’re doing so many cool things for the environment. The tangents he goes on are extremely helpful! Because it gives you a sense of the world. And that’s just Mr. Blondia!

So teachers talk about their experiences, they have the time to go off on tangents, and you don’t want the classes to end. Is there anything else that feels different?

Mrs. Blondia is like a second mom. And it’s kind of funny because she’s my FAU mom. And when I went there I was like, “I have an FAU mom, really?” skeptically. And she really is like my mom. And some people think it’s weird that you text teachers, but it’s just Leelanau. It’s kind of a mandatory thing to be able to text your teacher. It’s important partially because you live at the school. You never leave school and because you’re always at school… and, oh, I just had a realization!

You know how they tell you that you should never stop learning in your life? Well, if you live at a school, it kind of gives you practice to incorporate learning into your life at all times! You’re always walking past your classes, past adults, and those people who stay in their rooms are missing out. I think that’s why they have mandatory evening activities because people might not leave their room otherwise.

So that goes back to how to make the most of your Leelanau experience–leave your room! I love it! You’re very intuitive as to why we have evening activities.

Also, when I was trying to work on my thesis, I was going so hard all the time that my efficiency kept dwindling. And I was like “Hey can I skip evening activities so that I can work on this paper?” And they were like “Sure, as long as you’re working on it.”

So also, if you’re going through something, you’re able to advocate and express what you need. And you’re comfortable asking for time or space?

Yes. At some point, you kind of need to bite the bullet and ask for time for yourself if you need it. Don’t skip something just to skip it. If you’re always doing what you’re supposed to be doing and realize that you need a moment, just text Eisenstat. Like, “I’m having a rough night and I just need some downtime. Is that okay?” And she’s like, “Yeah, sure” or maybe, “Are you sure you can’t come?”

So real scoop, how do you feel about evening activities?

At first, I didn’t like them. But then I realized that it was only helpful. Because whatever pessimistic close-mindedness of “I will always hate this thing because I have to and I don’t like changing my opinion on things because then I have to double back,” you must learn to take accountability for yourself and not be afraid to change. 

And what activities do you like most?

Sometimes there’s a Moomer’s trip on Fridays and that’s always fun. Meijer trips are fun to stock up or just go to go. Sometimes it’s good to just go on a trip to not be at school and be in the real world. They have a good group of D&D going usually and Mr. Z is good at being the Dungeon master. And the evening activities are there to help you connect. So if you go to board and card games, and you play certain card games, you learn a lot about someone’s type of humor. And humor is one of the main ways we really like to connect. I’m always searching for the most efficient way to do something and so I’m looking for the most efficient way to connect with somebody and I realized humor is a big part of that. 

Speaking of humor, what is Mr. Hansen’s best joke?

Hmmm… Okay, I do listen to them, I promise. They’re funny. The puns are just classic. Especially when you’re not expecting it and you think the joke is over, but it’s not. And when people join in on the puns, it’s just trifecta! When Ricky chimes in, you know you’re going to laugh regardless of if the joke is funny or not, just because it’s Ricky.

I know I’d hate to answer this question, but pick 3 words to describe Leelanau. Only three.

[Long pause.] “Concentrated version of life.” Also, “of” doesn’t count as a word, it’s not even capitalized in movie titles. When you think of orange juice concentrate or chai tea concentrate, it’s a very potent… Potent! That’s an adjective, there we go! Leelanau is potent in the way they teach. The teaching is potent. The lifestyle is potent. Even the food is potent with flavor. The amount of words are potent. 

I think that needs to become our new hashtag for social media: A potent way to learn.

It’s very potent! The social side is very very potent. No matter how mature you get or are, someone else is not quite as mature in that area as you and you’re not as mature in an area as they are. And you have to accept that and they need to accept that.

So if Leelanau is this potent concentrate, what do you anticipate life will be like after Leelanau? Why do you want this concentrated experience now before college, travel, or a gap year?

I think it’s like a Devil Wears Prada situation. Leelanau’s potency is the Meryl Streep character who says, “We’re going to test you and we’re going to make you work,” and it’s going to get you places, but you’re going to have to kind of just keep going. And we’re here and you have your friends around you to support you. It’s a good and bad thing, which means it’s perfect. Like when people say “it’s all good things,” I don’t like that. It means it’s not real. 

So maybe real would be another word too?

Real! Potent. Real is another word. And I like the word real because everyone is like “Real, bro” but it’s also referring to the same definition of the word, so it’s fine across all generations. And it connects to what we were first talking about with not getting sidetracked about who you are. There’s no point in pretending who you are. You live with everybody, they’re going to find out. So don’t give them a false version of yourself. 

Like how Mr. Hansen says “Let your freak flag fly,” when people visit. 

I love Mr. Hansen so much. He’s always very intentional about being positive.

So I said I’d hate to answer this question, but when you talk about being positive and when I think of all the lovely morning shoutouts, all of what you’re sharing reminds me of one of my favorite words that I would pick, which is love. I feel like it might be cheesy, but I’m at Leelanau because of love. When I leave the dorms at night and say, “Goodnight I love you!” I really mean it. 

I love you too!

And I feel like people genuinely do love each other. Or maybe they don’t?

You like because and you love despite.

That’s very wise. 

Thanks. I got it from a movie.

I wonder how Leelanau friendships are different?

Extremely tested. Again, you cannot give someone a fake version of who you are. So you have to figure out really fast who you are if you haven’t already. It kind of gives you a reality check. And it’s extremely rewarding. Instead of the one or two friendships in regular life, where you realize, “Wow, they know this fake version of me and I should not be fake,” so you open up, you get 10 friendships like that all in one year, perhaps. And you just have to work toward something you’re proud of and someone else is going to appreciate that. It’s the knowing that we’re trying that connects us.

You help me give tours and you’re brilliant at it. What do you always want to make sure you show prospective students?

Hold on. I gotta just think of the tour real quick. We usually start at the bell and then we walk down to the river and then I’m always intentional about stopping and showing things–like being Mr. Blondia basically, especially when we’re walking in nature. And we stop and look at the fish if it’s in the fall and look at the white spots and then we go down to the beach. 

Wait, what are the white spots about?

You don’t know? Salmon get these white spots all over them and look like zombies basically because all their flesh is falling off. To lay their eggs they have to swim on their side and they use their tails to get rid of the soot on the rocks, then they lay their eggs on the rocks, but it rubs off the slimy coating that protects them. So they’re sacrificing their life for the babies.

So, we need to make sure prospective students see the fish zombies! Fish zombies might have to be a hashtag too. And this reminds me of giving a tour right now because you do always sidetrack us with stories! So, the question was what do you want to make sure prospective students always see?

The observatory is great and always impresses. But I think it’s more the interpersonal relationships in between classes and during classes. I like to just kind of peek in and I try to fit in almost a mini shadow day so that people can see what a class looks like and talk to teachers. 

That’s funny because I pictured an answer like, “I want to make sure they see the blue bench,” or, “I want to make sure they see the biology classroom,” but it comes back to relationships again. You want to show them people and interactions. So, what is your favorite class?

It used to be Mr. Blondia’s class in my freshman year because it’s Mr. Blondia and I love his tangents. Ms. Wolterink’s classes are just always the best. They teach you so many life lessons. Oh, that’s another thing. When you learn at Leelanau, you don’t learn from a textbook. And you don’t learn the facts about this weird thing. It’s more turned into a life lesson. This fact is taught into a life lesson or this life lesson is taught through a fact. And you’re like, oh this is awesome. 

Anyways, I just love having conversations with Ms. Wolterink. She is the most brilliant woman I have met in my life. In one of her classes during my freshman year, we would always get to class early because we just loved her class. And we’d have Tutorial to just sit and talk about cool things. And the conversation would last all of Tutorial and then the next 20 minutes of class too. And that happened every day and we loved it and she loved it. Even when I broke down crying because I couldn’t grasp the concept of black holes….

And, Mrs. Blondia’s class is just a favorite because she’s my favorite. She somehow makes history intriguing even though it’s my least favorite subject, it’s my favorite class. 

If someone’s reading this and they’re considering coming to The Leelanau School, what tips would you give them for transitioning from their current school to this one?

Leave it all behind. 

Like a fresh start? 

Not really. Okay, I’m going to give a metaphor real quick. And it’s a real one that just happened in my life.

We just moved into our new house and we moved all our stuff into the garage so that we could go through it and either move it into the house or get rid of it. So we’ve been cleaning out the garage and I thinned out like 85% of my clothes because I either don’t wear them, they don’t fit, or they’re ripped. And so I just got rid of all of them and it was way easier because they weren’t in the house yet. The fact that it was a fresh start helped me and inspired my mom too. The other day, she was like, “Ooh this was expensive, we should keep this.” She had this blue pot thing made for cooking a stew or a turkey and she bought it like 10 or 12 years ago and it was $500. And she was like, “Sara this was expensive. This is for when you cook a turkey or a stew.” And I looked at her, “When in my entire life have we ever baked a turkey or cooked a stew?” I told her to bring it to a place where it would actually be used. And we did that with an extra 30% of our stuff.

The metaphor is your new house is your new school. You live there. It’s your new home. As you settle in your new home, think to yourself will this ever be useful here? Will this habit be good for me? Did I outgrow this aspect of myself? Am I afraid to change myself? 

The only reason I am where I am today is because each time I moved to a new place, I knew I could restart. You can thin out aspects of yourself that don’t suit you anymore. 

That’s wisdom beyond just transitioning at Leelanau. That’s great life advice.

Because Leelanau is a concentrated version of life! 

Oh, and I have another metaphor. Concentrates get watered down and suddenly they’re very palatable and sweet. Wait, here it is! Take the water from the river and put it in your orange juice concentrate and you’ll have a very sweet life at Leelanau. (Public disclaimer: don’t drink the river water even though it is very clear and clean–it’s not as clean as you think.)