Happy birthday to the divine Ms. d’Arbeloff! You are lucky enough to spend your 17th birthday in Pucon, Chile, on the banks of the Trancura river, with 19 of your best friends. For your birthday, you get (among other things) your pick of Pucon’s finest birthday cake from that little place on Freesia and O’Higgins, the one with all the chocolate in the window. And- because you are such a superstar- you also get a trip down a 10 Km washboard road to the world famous hot springs and spa that lies in the shadow of a volcano! You will spend your birthday shrouded in mist and soaking in thermal springs. Not bad, not bad at all! 
And we, the aforementioned 19 of your best friends, are very lucky to know you. You bring so much to this trip and to this program. You have so many ideas about Amulet that you bring to World Literature, and such strong feelings about Auxillio (the main character) that you can’t help but discuss her around the fire in the evenings and in the van to kayaking. (As your English teacher, this thrills me.) You write poetry just for fun and you knock at my door in the evenings to share. You take care and pride in all those fantastic blog posts you write. You are positively killing it in photography! You and Alex Shallhorn have scoured Pucon for the best ice cream shop and, apparently, you’ve found it! You are tearing it up on the river, mastering roundhouses, hitting loops and sticking blunts. You are impressing us every step of the way.
Thanks for your big smile, your laughter, your willingness and your spirit. Thanks for being here at Huge Experiences. Your joy is contagious.
With love,
Your Mentor
