On Monday 27^th of March, I participated in the year seven religious education retreat, alongside the rest of my class. It was a cloudy day with rain drizzling down. We started the day in the undercroft, playing games led by the peer mentors. After around an hour of Dead Fish, Duck-duck Goose, Simon Says and Silent Ball, we boarded the bus and left to go to the Buninyong Football/Netball Club.

When we arrived, we sat in a circle and played Two Truths, One Lie. We worked together to put printouts of the Easter story into order, at each one talking about the what the different parts are about, and how they can be viewed in our lives - the deeper meaning of the ancient story.

For recess, everyone had brought a plate to share, and we ate outside where the food was laid out on the table. We ate any leftovers there for lunch, and there were lots of delicious foods.

The main part of the day was the small skits we performed in groups, acting out all the stations of the cross. Each group had two to four stations they had to perform, whilst reading a prayer, and there were many colourful fabrics strewn over the floor, waiting to be turned into creative props and costumes.

We ended the day doing a guided meditation and yoga session, which helped me calm down and spend time reflecting on the day.

One of my favourite parts was hanging out with my friends and eating food, as well as learning more about the famous bible story. We learnt about how we can relate things in the story to our everyday lives, for example, the Easter Story tells us to always keep hoping, even in the darkest of times, because you never know when a miracle might occur (like Jesus rising from the dead).

Overall, it was a fun experience, and I would recommend it to the future year seven students.

By Isabeau Turner, Year 7