Sunday 9 June 2013

Book Review/Malorie Blackman
Dossier: Les Heros de L'ombre/ Espions

Last Issue


Reverb Summer Edition

Here is our summer issue, we hope you enjoy it , and expect a lot more this coming September.
If you have any comments or would like to contribute , please email me at
"victoria.taittinger@gmail.com" or ,  drop us a line here or on our facebook page.
Bonnes Vacances ! :)

The Fashionable Critic




Parlons du Fashion Show 2013. En valais t’il la peine? Reste à voir ce que le jury en à penser, mais pour ce que j’en ai entendus, le show en a ravie plus d’un!
D’abord venons en à son organisation, en rappelant que les fonds récoltes, une belle somme,  on étaient reversés à Justice au Cœur.
Assurément,  le comité a fais un beau travail, et puis imaginer vous , avec cette nouvelle  sale dépourvus d’un catwalk et d’autant d’espace qu’auparavant les choses n’était pas facile . Mais ils pourraient s’améliorer sur quelques points en ce qui concerne l’organisation, la présentation (vidéo et leaflets)  et la circulation de l’information.
Bien sûr il faut reconnaître ce travail fou avec une administration parfois réticente.Merci à tout ce qui ont rendus le show possible !
Venons en désormais à la partie plus captivante de ces deux soirées, en omettant toutes les nuits blanches qui ont mené a son aboutissement.
On pourrait croire que les choses seraient différentes après la première fois.
Une fois sous les spotlights, la deuxième ne serais t’elle pas moins éblouissante ?
Eh bien ! Non, détrompez vous. Elle est d’autant plus incroyable.
Je ne saurais vous décrire exactement ce sentiment… un sentiment que tout ce qui ont participer au Fashion Show connaissent surement. C’est un mix de stress, Bonheur, d’une attente trop longtemps refoulé et d’une bonne dose de soulagement après tant de travail qui est vite suivis par le regret de ne pouvoir repasser et d’être forcé de patienter à  contrecœur jusqu’a l’année prochaine.
Mais avant de penser à l’année prochaine il faudrait vous parler de cette année.
Les groupes on tous fais preuves d’une grande créativité, que ce soit Dolls and Puppets avec leur mémorable jack in the box, Star Wars et leur chorégraphie entrainante sur “going to heaven with the stars” ou encore Fashion Tools et leurs designs a la fois chic et originaux fruits de l’imagination d’une seule.
Apres pour les gagnants vous les connaissez, et ce , avec raison.
Qui n’a pas été émerveillé par Dream Catchers ? Avec leurs danses envoutantes, ce petit nuage chapoté, ses robes de toiles et de plumes, et cette cage qui a du prendre un temps fou ! Subtile et sublime a la fois, bravo.
Qui n’a pas adorée ce Carnaval coloré qui s’ouvre en live ? Des oiseaux d’un bien beau plumage! En plus d’une danse exécutée à la perfection et une compilation musicale qui nous a donné envie de prendre le premier ticket direction Rio. Félicitations!
Ah, maintenant les Boys. Ces garçons qui avec leur Evolution of Dance en ont font craqué plus d’une,  on créer une sacrée polémique parmi les participants.
Une troisième place non méritée ? Je ne pense pas. Oui , peut être n’ont ils pas entièrement assimilés les termes “fashion” et “création” mais en tout cas le “show” et l’énergie était la. Une fin belle et bien digne d’un si beau show.

Alors venez nombreux l’année prochaine à cet évènement unique qui dure, et je l’espère, dureras.

By Victoria Taittinger 




A Look back at London 2012  by Corentin HERBINET 
Well, 2012 was quite a year for London, wasn't it? With the Queen's Diamond Jubilee and of course the unmissable Olympic Games, people all around the world got a feel for the british culture and London's mix of tradition and modernity.
More than six months have now passed since Team GB's open-top bus parade to celebrate their achievements with all their fans. Therefore, now is the right time to have a look back at London 2012 and check if it respected al of its contract(s).
I can start by saying what everyone already knows: the London Olympic Games honoured sport, thanks to amazing athletes taking part in various events, in modern infrastructures. The Games created a movement of optimism in London and even around Great Britain.
But what marks did London 2012 leave? Firstly, the event was a defeat for British economy: more than 10 billion pounds were spent to organise the Games, which is aproximately the same as they spend on tertiary education (universities, colleges, etc.) in a year. Some people will say that the 3% increase in tourists in 2013, wanting to see London's beauty for themselves, is a benefit but it will never give the taxpayers' their money back.
Nevertheless, the city of London has used the Games as a start to restructuring the Eastern, ex-industrial, area of the town. The Olympic Park will be opened to everyone from July 2013 and will be renamed the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. This will be the centre of a new vibrant and active part of London where companies are being persuaded to move to, next to the huge Westfield shopping centre. The Olympic Village (the apartments where all the athletes lived) will be sold as cheap and modern apartments. What's more, the East of London's connectivity has greatly improved during the Games: it will be served by eight train lines, with London City Airport less than 20 minutes away, and half-an-hour away from the M25, one of Britain's most used motorway.
But what about its sports legacy? In my opinion, London 2012 was a great show of solidarity and making sport available to everyone. Many Londoners came together to make the Olympics the best event London has ever seen and nothing would have been possible without the “Game Makers”, the huge number of volunteers who literally made the Games successful. 2012 was also the first time that the Paralympics receive as much attention as they did: all the people that didn't manage to get a ticket for the “real” Games (and there were many) took the Paralympics as an opportunity to discover the Olympic atmosphere and by consequence most stadiums were full. The crowd weren't shy to show their support for the handicapped heroes pushing their bodies to the limit.
London 2012's motto was “Inspire a Generation” and inspire a generation they did. Team GB's great performance at the Games gave the opportunity to children to watch plenty of sports during ther summer holidays and there has been a significant increase in children participation all around Britain's sports clubs. 2012 was the first time that a host nation put out a team or at least a participant for every single sport represented at the tournament, which gave everyone the opportunity to discover new sports while still supporting their favourite team. The symbolic lighting of the Olympic torch by a few future athletes represented exactly what London 2012 did right: passing the torch to the young and letting sport get its deserved victory.

The unsung heroes


The unsung heroes

“What happens when well-known men die?”
Well dear we build a monument.
“What else?” Well we all cry and cry.
We weep a lot and we lament.

“What happens when unknown men die?”
Well dear we dig a shallow grave,
Rain opens them up to the sky,
Memory is an empty cave.

“But what if they were also great?”
My dear, fame we do not forsake.

“Take me to where their ashes lay
And there all I will see is earth.
Take me to where their souls now play
Then I will be the judge of worth.”

Tatiana LEBRETON


The master of fates


The master of fates

Steady! Steady! Engineer!
Captain’s coming down from deck!
Get the grime, every smear,
Captain’s coming down to check!

Steady! Steady! Engineer!
Got a leakage in the ship!
Water’s come to laugh and sneer,
Get the buckets! Quick! Quick! Quick!

Steady! Steady! Engi- Eek!
Got a big burst in the pipe!
Gotta fix it up real neat
Otherwise, explode it might!

Steady! Steady! Engineer
Who keeps this dear boat afloat.
Now hide in the engine’s gear
A mere shadow in a coat.

Tatiana LEBRETON


Nouvelles


First Alarm. Are you kidding me? It’s still black as death out there. Hit the snooze button. A few minutes, I can’t be late with a few minutes.
Second Alarm. Well the situation hasn’t gotten much better, still one of those tireless winter mornings that persist in invading an already morose spring calendar.
Third alarm. Now is the time to make a move.
After the daily ritual of a cup of green tea, it’s the fashion trial. The comfy grey sweater , top shelf, and funky leggings could do…but one quickly remembers, that among those three thousand students, looks do matter. Oh certainly nothing wrong with that outfit, but if you want to look like your having one of those snug days, it can’t be effortless.
Hair is the key, braids should do the trick.

One quick look at my phone tells me he answered. With a goodbye that remains unanswered in an empty house, I’m off. 8:28? That’s okay, supposedly…. it’s safe till 8:40, right? Wrong. With most it’s 8:31.All though it is undeniably disrespectful, who has it in them to rush?

The hustle and bustle of the street oozes past my headphones.
The clipedy claps from the glistening pavements accompany Cat Stevens, the fast beeping lights interrupt Dire Straits and the still cabs’ hum momentarily join the morning’s harmony.

We are face to face now. The dreaded blue gate and I. Enemies till university do us part.
I’m in for an extra fifteen minutes, until someone deems it a fit and most useful punishment.
Unfortunately laziness not being considered an acceptable reason, and since I can’t think of anything witty at the moment, “problème de bus” will have to do.

First row for good figure. Oh I don’t mind participating. What I hate are useless questions that lead nowhere, not the ones where someone is attempting to understand, but the ones where someone tries to give the illusion they are participating  and lamely attempt to show the little knowledge they may hold through an interrogative form.
After the first quarter she has already lost half the class. It’s not her, it’s the system.
The way we are taught often fails to captivate if you aren’t already passionate.
I do love it, but my mind is elsewhere.

Smoking hour strikes. I still fail to see what they all find attractive? 
Sure, when Audrey Hepburn or James Dean were at it, you could say it was sexy, daring, the thing to do.
Now, it’s unoriginal, dreadfully unoriginal and preposterous.
There they are “ taxing” and chitchatting about who was most hammered last Friday night, and the unforgettable upcoming exams.
The alternative would be the repulsive green préau with it’s two absurd empty pots.
I suppose outside, with half the school, but mind you, only the cool and popular half of it, is a better, at least more esthetic option.
What would he think if he were to see me now? With a fag at my lips.
A traitor, that’s what I would be. She died because of it, he knows that.

The bell tolls for us. Off to class again. No matter how hard I try, getting him of my mind remains impossible. A single word can summon him , an image bring him to mind and a thought keep him there.
Maybe a math test isn’t the most appropriate place to day dream? Granted it isn’t the most comfortable. Nonetheless, those aren’t things you can control. 
When you realise, it’s too late, they’ve already crawled under your skin and engrained themselves there, for pleasure like pain, worries like happiness and constant wondering. But right now, with him, I was happy. It seemed he was the only one to care, not by obligation but will. I guess that’s what does the trick, someone that listens, and is worth listening to. 
Your always going to get hurt, it’s finding the one that is worth getting hurt by that matters.

Corridor to corridor, wall to wall, class to class, desk to desk, sit to sit, poet to poet goes on till 6’o’ clock. After the best wishes for nocturnal homework, the rond point gradually empties. All those people whose name you will never bother to learn, head back to similar homes. Broken marriages holding by a thread, constant reprimand for nothing and anything, conversations that lead nowhere, a worrisome future that, slowly but surely, drags you in closer and closer by the minute…but he is there.
I run up the stairs, furtively look for my bag, grab it, unlock it, and smile as his name flashes onto the screen. I can’t wait to read it.

Perplexed, I stop midsentence; my eyes refuse to read on. I sit.
The words hit against my skull, their echo invade my every thought.
“In the city” resonates, “ accident” crushes it, “dead” chokes me.
“Dead”, “dying”, “gone”, that’s all I hear. That’s all I’ll ever hear.

Anonymous


Nouvelles


Le chaos régnait. Partout. On tentait de sauver ses possessions, sa peau si on était moins bête, ou si l’on comprenait la situation plus clairement. Et puis il y en avait aussi, qui, toujours, derrière leurs bureaux, tentaient de sauver la république.
Il rentrait d’Orly, ou il venait de voire Dunderdale, un ami Anglais, qui était venu évacuer un polonais, très cher aux services de renseignements britanniques. Un coup d’œil lui avait fait comprendre que Dunderdale était désolé, mais que son petit avion officiel ne pouvait prendre personne d’autre. De toute façon, il n’avait pas envisagé cette solution pour fuir. Il aurait été porté déserteur. Même pendant une invasion on prend le temps de faire l’appel.
Vite, très vite, il avait rejoint le quai d’Orsay, et avait monté quatre à quatre les marches de l’escalier.
« Monsieur Langeron ? » Il avait demandé au fonctionnaire derrière le bureau.
« En bas, occupé à surveiller le chargement des péniches. » L’autre n’avait pas relevé le nez de son travail.
      Il était rapidement redescendu. Roger Langeron, préfet de police de Paris, supervisait effectivement le chargement des dernières caisses dans deux péniches à vapeur. Il n’avait pas l’air surpris de le voir.
« Vous allez avec eux. Il y a vingt-cinq kilos de dynamite avec tous ce fatras. Le conducteur connait la route, vous n’avez qu’à saborder. Personne ne doit avoir ces documents. » Ils descendirent ensemble dans une des péniches. Un homme installait un pavillon prioritaire, bien visible, sur le pont.
« Qu’est ce que c’est ? » Il ouvrit une des caisses. Elle était remplie de papiers.
« Tous les documents du quai. Et quelques autres. Ces caisses là, particulièrement, vous y faites attention. Ce sont toutes les fiches sur les familles juives qu’on a pu trouver. Ca n’empêchera rien, mais au moins ca les ralentira. Et puis, peut-être qu’il y en aura qui parviendront à passer entre les mailles du filet… »
« Monsieur le préfet ? » Un des gendarmes demanda, en rentrant à moitié à l’intérieur « Nous appareillons. »
Le préfet leur dit au revoir, les gendarmes et lui, en leur répétant de saborder la péniche s’ils étaient arrêtés.
« Il était temps. Les frisés seront là dans moins de deux jours. »
***
      L’écluse était en miettes. Des bouts de la porte flottaient sur l’eau, les bords du canal étaient éventrés, et l’eau coulait librement. Pour la péniche, en revanche, cela aurait été plus difficile de passer.
« Y’a pas a dire, c’est drôlement précis, leurs stukas. »
      Ils cachèrent la péniche dans des roseaux, sur le bord du Loing, et la sabordèrent.
« Voilà. Quelques tonnes de papier buvard en plus pour les poissons. »
« Qu’est ce qu’on fait maintenant ? » L’autre péniche avait pris un autre chemin. Avec un peu de chance, elle serait plus rapide que l’avancée allemande.
« Nous on doit marcher jusqu'à la gendarmerie. On fera notre rapport là. Vous venez avec nous ? »
Il réfléchit un moment. « Je vais me débrouiller, merci. Bonne chance. » Lui et les gendarmes partirent dans deux directions opposées, eux vers le sud-est, lui vers le nord-ouest.
Après vingt minutes de marche, par pure chance, il arriva à une intersection. Un groupe de mobilisés du centre s’y tenaient. Ils le prirent dans leur camion en échange de directions. Il avait eu la chance de s’ennuyer beaucoup, enfant, et de se distraire en apprenant les grandes routes de France par cœur. Ils seraient à Brest le 17 juin.
***
      Il se promenait sur le quai militaire, attendant, comme tous les autres. Peu de gens avaient des ordres, encore moins avaient les ressources pour les exécuter.
« Z’avez du feu ? »Un marin lui demandait, une cigarette à la main.
« En permission ? » lui demanda-t-il, en tendant son briquet.
« Non, coulé. Sabordé, plutôt. » Il lui rendit son briquet.
« Comment ça, sabordé ? »
« Ordres de l’amiral Darlan, le grand gourou. Tous les navires qui ne sont pas en état de prendre la mer doivent se saborder. Sinon, départ vers les Antilles, Dakar, ou un port anglais. La plupart partent vers les ports français. Sauf les sous-marins. Leur navire ravitailleur, le Jules Verne, est parti plus tôt, menant tambour battant neuf petits de 600 tonnes, et cinq gros de 1500 tonnes. »
« Il y en a encore qui restent ? »
Le marin ricana « Oui, si l’on veut ! Y’en a quelque uns sur lesquels les ingénieurs s’épuisent, pour les rendre étanches avant l’après-midi. Sinon, il y a le Surcouf, mais lui, on est même pas sur qu’il parte. »
      Le Surcouf n’avait pas été très dur à trouver. Il était en carénage, complètement à sec, pour réparations. Des jurons sortaient ostensiblement de ses entrailles, traitant éperdument le moteur de tous les noms possibles et imaginables.
      Un officier se tenait sur le bord, seul. Il se tourna vers lui tandis qu’il approchait.
« Un problème ? »
« Non, mon capitaine, mais je cherche à rejoindre l’Angleterre, et j’entends que vous partez. »
L’homme fit une grimace. « Vous n’êtes pas de la navale, vous. De toute façon, ca n’a pas d’importance. On ne peut pas y aller au diesel, et nous ne sommes pas sûrs de réparer les moteurs électriques. »
« Mais…si vous y arrivez ? »
Le capitaine réfléchit un instant. « Vous pouvez venir. Soyez ici à six heures du matin. Mais, je ne garantis pas qu’on parte. »
***
      Un cri collectif de joie fut poussé par les sous-mariniers lorsque, après plusieurs heures de harcèlement par l’équipe d’ingénieurs, les moteurs électriques daignèrent enfin donner signe de vie. Le sous-marin s’arma rapidement, et commença la traversée. Une large portion de la flotte française, ou, plus précisément, tout ce qui avait un canon, des marins, et était en état de flotter, partait en même temps qu’eux. Le plus impressionnant départ fut celui du Richelieu, l’énorme cuirassé, une des fiertés de la marine française, qui les dépassa allègrement.
« Quatre nœuds, quatre nœuds. » murmurait le capitaine « Je suis humilié. Le plus grand sous-marin du monde quitte le port, sur ses moteurs auxiliaires, incapables de plonger, à quatre nœuds de vitesse. »
« C’est toujours ça que les Allemands n’auront pas. »
Ils regardaient avec une pointe de tristesse la côte française qui s’éloignait.
« Ca se voit que vous n’êtes pas de la navale. »
« Non, je suis volontaire temporaire dans la gendarmerie. Comment le savez-vous ? »
« Les marins savent que le mon n’est pas un adjectif possessif, mais l’abréviation de monsieur. Et, depuis la défaite de Trafalgar, les officiers n’ont pas le droit d’être appelés monsieur capitaine, dans la marine. Que comptez-vous faire en Angleterre ? »
« Pour un début, écouter la BBC. J’ai une assez bonne notion de l’anglais pour comprendre si on engage des français. »
« Faites comme vous voulez. On y sera vers 22 heures. » Dit le capitaine. « 22 heures du 18 juin 1940 »

by Pacome Cardon 

Nouvelles


As the slow ringing of the alarm clock echoes in my head, I felt myself rising out of bed. What day was it? Probably Wednesday. It didn’t matter. It was just another day of the week. To add a little drama, the voice in my head gave it an opening: my name is Mercury and this is the longest day of my life.
Just as the school bell rang, I passed the classroom’s threshold and noticed that my favourite seat was free. Third row, far left, next to the window. M. Summer had finally decided to show his face, and he had brought M. Sun along with him. If the day was really so bright, then why was no one smiling?
I learnt later from a fellow class member that we had just sat through a two-hour long history test. Hence the general cursing.

Walking down the stairs of the tallest white building, I crossed paths with a girl who tried to sell me these coloured ribbons, insisting it was for a good cause. She claimed to be a volunteer for the school-based charity organisation “Justice au cœur”. I had heard of them before. How could you miss those posters where they quoted all kinds of ‘great men’ saying ‘inspiring’ things? Who where they kidding, trying to convince people to donate? You can change a lot of things, but you can’t change human nature. People know charities exist. If they had wanted to donate, they already would have. Maybe they had, but I doubt it. I finally complied and bought a red ribbon. The girl seemed happy enough as a soft smile drew itself on her lips. I watched as a strand of her chestnut-blonde hair brushed in front of her bright, green eyes. 
I was about to ask her name when she left to interrupt more people in their repetitive discussions.

Off I went to the Vie Scolaire to justify another absence of mine. What did it matter to them, anyway? All in all, you’re just another cross on the list. So, to soothe my boredom, I picked up a Newcomer’s leaflet to the school. The opening message said, inter alia, that the staff is also here to “promote the well being of your social life while maintaining your individuality”. As to think that they are even starting to believe their own hot air. It was signed by our beloved headmaster, the man on the ant hill, looking down on us from his fourth-floor view. With that, I closed the door behind me.
Half past one already, sitting in the school cafeteria with my two best friends, our laughter lost in the never-ending chatter that surrounded us. Around us swarmed the yellow jackets, small men who were given the authority they so much craved.
Authority over children, authority none the less. For some reason, I kept looking at the three main entrances to the large, yellow room, looking for something. 
I had my friends right here, was it not enough?

A cloud had moved over to cover up the mid-afternoon sun, giving us all a chance to breathe. I took this opportunity to step inside the foyer, a sanctuary where you could gather your thoughts and prepare for the fail that your next test would inevitably be.
There she was again, the girl with the green eyes. This time, she was putting up posters for the CVL, a ‘power to the people’ thing for the students, spreading a false sense of democracy among them. The members were all elected by popularity, and popularity alone. I had never even heard of half of them, in fact, I hadn’t bothered to vote. One of the girl’s friends came by and asked about her implication in the CVL. 
From what I overheard, she had barely made the list, but was the most determined to actually make a significant change. That’s what she said.
When her friend left, I decided to go talk to her and my heart started beating slightly faster. It was probably just the heat. After a brief exchange, she told me she was parading at the school’s Fashion Show that evening and invited me to come. With little doubt I agreed.

For the first time, I stayed after hours in these empty walls they called school.
I hoped the evening wouldn’t be a total loss, after all, I wouldn’t want to miss out on the repetitive cycle I would be coming home to. As I passed by the Churchill room, the floor started vibrating: the music had just started.
I came in through a long, white corridor before slipping behind the back row. 
So people came and did their thing, group after the other, I wasn’t really paying attention. Towards the end of the parade, the moment finally came. 
There she was in all her glory, painting colour in the grey wall that my life was, without even knowing it. She was out there, shining like the brightest star while I was back here, on the dark side of my lonely little moon. I felt so small.
After the end credits had rolled, and my self-esteem gone with them, I made my way to the exit. I hadn’t reached the door when a hand went out to grab my arm. To my surprise, it was her. We talked longer than before, but this time she wasn’t as confident and was often lost for words. I can’t say I was doing any better myself. Finally, I just asked if she was free that Friday evening, to which she answered yes.

On the trip back home that night, I think I dozed off in the tube. There it was, the sound of silence. All the demons had run off into the sunset and there came peace at last. Maybe my bleak view of society had finally shed its skin, some light had leaked out. The neon lights of the subway rushed passed me. And for the first time in a very long time, I smiled.

 by Mercury


The Self : The Greatest Illusion


The Self: The Greatest Illusion

What is your self?

Oxford dictionary defines the self as “a person’s essential being that distinguishes them from others, especially considered as the object of introspection or reflexive action”. You. 
The self is basically considered to be the essence of you
It is your past,your future, your personality, your thoughts, your memories. 
As you lie in bed each morning, just woken up, with your eyes straining to make sense of your
surroundings and the nighttime’s haze slowly lifting from your mind, the first-person observer of reality reassembles itself to take on the new day. That first-person observer is your self.

Your self is many things indeed. But one thing it might not be is real.

The claim that the self does not exist seems erroneous, and even ludicrous. If your self isn’t real, who are you? Isn’t the doubt of the existence of the self, proof enough that the self does indeed exist?
As we try to make sense of it all, getting a grip on the true notion of the self is tricky. Thankfully scientists have amalgamated three fundamental beliefs about the self. First: the self is unchanging and continuous. Second: the self is the “unifier” of the world around us. Third: the self is an agent, meaning it thinks and acts. Two different models of the self, based on these three fundamental beliefs, have been determined: that of a string of pearls, and that of a rope.
According to the first model, the self is a continuous and constant element that runs through our life like a thread runs through the string of pearls. It is present at every moment of our lives yet is always unchanging. Our mood fluctuations, changes of opinions or tastes, symbolized by the pearls, have no effect on this thread of self.
However,the empirical evidence scientists claim so far on the self points towards the second model. Presumably, just as a rope is made up of a sequence of overlapping short fibres, the self would be a continuity of overlapping mental events.

Regardless of the chosen model, it is clear that the sense of self is an effortless, intuitive and axiomatic human experience. But it is nothing more than an intricate illusion.
The Buddhists were the first to assert that there is no unique individual self, by stating that everything is impermanent and the self is an illusion. In Buddhism, “suffering comes from craving, and the idea of the self is a craving for immortality”.
For the less religious, there is also empirical evidence that suggests the sense of self is no more than an illusion, no more than an elaborate construct of the mind.

But it seems to serve us well: the illusion is so anchored in us, and so useful to our reality, that it is impossible- and maybe even dangerous- to shake it off.