Bouncing Butler

26 June 2026 - Butler

If more evidence were needed to support that idea that as speed increases time dilates, the final half-term at Wycombe Abbey would surely be a contender! How else to explain that, as we hurtled towards the end of the academic year, so much was squeezed into a mere four weeks?

And what a ride it has been. The UIV Duke of Edinburgh practice expedition on the hottest days of the summer term and the LV Geography field trip undertaken in the pouring rain provided ample opportunities for personal growth and supportive teamwork, even if that isn’t exactly how the LV described it on their return! The raft race on Dove Day is also probably best described as a ‘learning opportunity’; perhaps the recent fortunes of Ipswich Town FC (a club very close to some Butler hearts) in securing success from the previous year’s nadir could act as a spur for summer 2027? Time can indeed heal and there is hope that bribes won’t be required to put out a crew next year!

It has been great to see the girls dig deep on so many occasions, such as mustering the determination to win by two runs in the eight-ninth position play-off in the House Cricket funals, and by one run in the Barry-Butler annual rounders match, thereby maintaining their overall winning stat in that particular inter-house competition. It was also super to have the Butler UIII join us for the event and see them get stuck in so well – we are very much looking forward to having them join us as fully fledged members of the House in September.

On Dove Day, the faces of the tug-of-war team were pictures of grit and stamina as they brilliantly won that competition. And a heartfelt ‘well done’ to the Butler girls and parents for producing the best-judged hamper – a superb effort assiduously co-ordinated by our unstinting Charity Representative, Maddy. Bravo must also go to Vera and her brother, and to Summer and her mother, for their participation in the Charity Tennis Tournament, and to Chloe for performing so fabulously at GlastonAbbey, rounding off an excellent final weekend of the Wycombe year.

The Fourth Form play, ‘Peter Pan’, in which Gloria, Ava and Maggie were excellent Butler representatives, was swashbuckling good fun, and the LV entry for House Plays was highly entertaining, garnering lots of audience laughs. Written and produced by the LV girls, it was a touching and comedic backstory of the friendship origins of Timon and Pumbaa (of Lion King fame).

Of course, the Football World Cup has provided occasion for the House to come together, and the atmosphere in the Butler Drawing Room for England’s group matches was electric. Meanwhile, The House Inning, a Butler festival of music, food and games, was hugely enjoyed – as were the water fights that took place on a couple of evenings!

It has been said that joy and sorrow are two sides of the same coin, and the happiness of the last four weeks has been tinged by some sadness, as we said goodbye to our Mons (LVI). For them in particular, it is:

The end of the school year, a threshold crossed,
A mixture of excitement, and of loss,
But as one door closes, another will open,
And we step through, hearts hoping.

The poignancy of leaving the home they have known, in some cases for five years, mixed with the enticing anticipation of pastures new in Clarence, does indeed create a bitter-sweet moment. Even if only for one year, I feel very fortunate to have been their housemistress, and very much look forward to them popping back to Butler for time to time, to let us know how they are getting on.

The UV managed their GCSE exam season admirably well, balancing unallayed focus on the task at hand with a healthy sense of perspective. We have certainly missed them in the House over the last couple of weeks and look forward to their return as what will be much-loved leaders of Butler in September.

The UIV bade a fond farewell to Miss Smith, as she headed off on her maternity leave, and we wish her all the very best for the year ahead.

And so, as a well-deserved break for all stretches invitingly ahead, I wish the Butler girls going on the Music tour to Belgium or the Lacrosse tour to the USA a fabulous time. Thank you, as ever, for being such a supportive and generous parent and guardian body (I couldn’t have asked for more), and I wish you and your daughters a wonderful holiday. Let’s raise a glass to recharging the batteries before going again in September!