By Daniela Palatchi
It is the start of the third month of school, and students and faculty are getting broken in droves. A wide range of people are getting hurt, especially athletes who put their limbs on the line for the War Eagles. Who are these brave soldiers that have sacrificed so much and what are their stories? In some cases, these boots are not made for walking, as a certain ginger with a boot as well as a zippy scooter has proved us all wrong by cutting it up in the lunch line on four wheels. Other civilians have bad cases of stressed stress fractures and general trauma to their body. Let’s hope their amputations go well.
It literally cost them an arm and a leg.
Eva Locke ’27 and Julia Copeland ’24 entering the Woodruff elevator since they can’t walk up the stairs. Always remember to travel in pairs. Photo courtesy Daniela Palatchi
The football team has seen some gory injuries this season. For Max Ferree-Nauman ‘27, his left leg was laid-off from the football field a month ago in a detrimentally challenging practice. The injury also posed an issue in participating in Peer Day last week when he was interviewed.
“I have a high ankle sprain and a fractured growth plate at football a month ago, give or take,” Max said. “I was blocking somebody and I tripped and rolled back over my ankle. It kinda sucks, I’m not gonna lie. I had to miss out on a bunch of stuff today at Peer Day.”
We all appreciate Max for taking one for the team and experiencing brokenness so that we don’t have to. Max just got his boot off this Tuesday, so, if you see him in the hallways, congratulate him on his healing and thank him for his service as president of the broken freshman class.
Chorus member Rania Noorani ‘26 has been spotted in her black leg locker since Sept.14 and has been hobbling around on one foot ever since. When a love for singing oversteps and breaks boundaries, bones can, too. Or can they?
“It’s not really broken, it’s just sprained,” Rania said. “Two weeks ago I was in Jazz Choir, and I slipped down some steps, and I hurt my ankle.”
Rania Noorani ’26 and her big black boot. Photo courtesy Daniela Palatchi
Rania also reports of the reaction from her fellow Jazz Choir members following her unforgettable fall. Needless to say, they found it hilarious.
“Well, everyone started laughing at me,” Rania said. “All I had to do was laugh back because I wasn’t gonna do anything. And then I let it sit. The teachers told me to rest it on a chair, and then it started hurting and I started crying.”
While we can all get a legit chuckle out of a friend falling, it is not okay to continue to taunt your friends, or even call them names referring to their brokenness. After all, we must be grateful that we ourselves are not broken, and remember what Taylor Swift said about karma: “I don’t really like being called [a] cripple everywhere I go.”
Thumbs up on redout day for these limpers and rollers, Julia Copeland ‘24, Sadler Wilson ‘25, and Rocco Xerogeanes ‘26. Photo courtesy Daniela Palatchi
Mrs. Malia Meyers has a history of impairment to her limbs dating back to high school and has had her fair share of crutches for a lifetime. Rumor has it that she keeps a cabinet full of them in her Gov/Econ classroom. Mrs. Meyers honorably disclosed that her knees readily dislocate, and, once they dislocate, the ligaments loosen around the kneecap, prompting them to dislocate again.
“This is my third knee surgery on that leg,” Mrs. Meyers said. “It’s my left leg. It has been a long journey and I’m hoping that this is my last surgery because this one’s been the worst one yet.”
If anyone is to blame for Mrs. Meyers’s knee, it’s the universe. She is doing all she can to fight against the universe’s schemes.
“I’m gonna be taking my physical therapy very seriously and strengthening up all my muscles so that hopefully it will not continue to dislocate because I do not want to have surgery for a fourth time,” Mrs. Meyers said.
May our thoughts and prayers go out to Mrs. Meyers; you know what they say: third time’s the charm! Just remember, all you peg-legged survivors, to put your best foot forward this time.