The laughter and the noises coming from the back seats of the bus were loud enough for me to hear. The thing that annoyed me the most was not the constant chattering, nor the long tiring hours before we got to the campsite It was the fact that the other kids could talk so freely to each other and I couldn’tt At that moment, staring emptily at my hands resting on my lap seemed like the easiest thing to do, The summer before I started high-school, I decided to attend an English summer camp. The camp would be beyond the beach time; a place full of teenagers, foreign volunteers, and squad activities. On the other hand, it was me. I was shy, had low self»esteetn and turned away from any seemingly impossible challenge. At first, I did hesitated but then decided to give it a try If this wasn’t the right time to actually face my difficulties of communication and interacting, when would it be?
Although I had done so much preparation and given so much prep talks to myself, the first day on our arrival at the camp didn‘t turn out as I expected. Everyone seemed to know each other as most of them had participated regularly Even though Shawn, the camp‘s director, welcomed all of us heartwarmingly, I still couldn’t shake off the feeling of anxiety. I just wanted to go home and isolate myself from all these two-legged speaking creatures in front of me. Only after the camp routine was announced did I realize what an overwhelming program was I expected to follow. The day would start with gym, breakfast, Biblical lesson, beach time, afternoon meal and activities, siesta, sports again beach time, then dinner and director show. We were divided into teams named after colors.
It was exactly this kind of cooperation I didn’t have and everyone else just looked so much motivated to do their best We were split up and the activities began. At first at the morning exercises, I noticed that I didn’t run or perform as hard as I could. That also happened at sports, I actually did not want to be thrown the ball or be the first at Hoops game. That way I would definitely draw attention to myself, something I didn’t like I didn‘t want to be the one at fault if the play didn’t succeed or give my team no points at alL I did not want the responsibility because I was too afraid of making a mistake. To my surprise, I also noticed that I couldn’t express myself properly when talking to volunteers even though I had been learning English for about five years hat time, I refrained from asking questions during Biblical and English classes because I thought that they might be considered too stupid or dumb by my classmates I also prevented myself from signing to take part in individual competitions like swimming race etc.
So yet my apprehension prevailed because I was still afraid of making mistakes and getting blamed by angry teammates, However, during the first days, I did not always stayed hidden in the cabin. Thanks to my good abilities at Math, I came first at logic games, raising my team’s points, for which I was congratulated, I also tried to demonstrate in the next days my drawing talent, I tried to be creative and attended craft activities. People I thought I would never speak to, came and showed interest in my creations.
Over these few days, this place and those people taught me what it takes to succeed, I gained communication and interacting motivation I learned to work well with others in a group and cooperate with teammates on critical situations, But most important I gained self- confidence that accompanied me to high—school. It was this experience that helped me in my achievements, Now I realize that it is necessary to risk failure in order to gain success. Now I welcome the challenge, I hope that my college years not only teach my future profession but be a multicultural place where I come through new people, new experiences that not only help me brighten my future but also build a better character.
