Running through the jungle, he felt his heart pumping. The walls all around him seem to be closing in on him, and time is running out. Soon he will not be able to go back to the formidable society that he was once a part of; he had rumors say there are strange creatures lurking in this sacred courtyard.

Although this may sound like the Maze Runner, (a new movie that just came out to theaters this month) but it actually strikes a little closer to home, the courtyard in the middle of Cannon Falls High School. Students and staff both have walked by this jungle, but few know the story behind it, or believe that the scenic view is worth the wasted class space. Bruce Erlanson, who is part of the ground maintenance crew in the high school, was able to elaborate on the subject of this unkempt jungle. “It started off as just a senior wing, and a junior wing,” he described. “ In ’73, they wanted it enclosed. They wanted an open area, and so now it’s wasted space .”

This courtyard could have been intended for higher purposes. Maybe it was built so that students could go out there during lunch, take a shortcut to a class on the other side of the building, or for biology or other science classes to study the outdoors and have experiments in a closed environment. Erlanson clarifies and shows that it wasn’t:  “The reasons why students aren’t able to go out there is because it’s a fire hazard, there’s not enough doors if there was an emergency for the students to get out.”

We know  that it wasn’t meant for students to go out into, but a viable reason for its being may be to inspire and give fresh air to those classes in the inner ring.  “I really like it,” said Mrs. Davisson, who has a room by this jungle. “We had a very harsh winter last year, and there was a robin, sitting on the tree. I took a picture of it with my phone, and it was nice to be able to look out there and look at the birds. It’s also nice, because there isn’t distraction of kids going outside for gym, yet they still get these great benefits of being able to look outside.”

At least we can know that this courtyard has been put to good use, either for inspiration, a look at the birds, or for pranks. “There have been many turkeys and wild animals that have been thrown in their for senior pranks,” chuckles Bruce, “One time we had to chase some wild turkeys down, and when you try chasing an animal like that, they tend to [poop!]”