Risking the Fall

 

Then I started thinking about my first day at Stanstead College. I arrived full of nervousness, stepping into a completely unfamiliar world. From the welcoming tent, to Colby, from the student center to Davis, everything felt strange but so exciting. I was surrounded by an environment with a new language and people that I had never met before. I remember a prefect from Davis helping me carry my things to my room and asking, “Why did you choose this school? I froze. It all felt so sudden that I didn’t even know how to answer – just like I had no idea how to start my speech. 

 

But during the last year, I slowly started to find my position and push myself to try new things and face new challenges, with encouragement from teachers and friends. Sometimes I may feel scared or unsure, but I realized that taking small steps can lead to big changes. Looking back, Stanstead College has brought me a lot of challenges. These are like forces acting on us: they might push us out of our comfort zones, but they also set us in motion. 

 

I still remember last year, during the prefect-vs-teacher broomball game, Mr.  Winquist ran on the ice in sneakers but still faster than anyone else. I asked him how he did it, and he told me you must be brave and forget everything when you are on the ice. It is not about the coefficient of friction between your shoes and the ice, it is about courage. Even if you fall, you can still get up. But if you don’t try, you’ll never know what you can do. His words stuck with me; sometimes, we focus too much on understanding the “rules” of life, like Newton’s laws or how to avoid falling on ice. But the truth is, none of that matters if we don’t take the first step. 

 

Life is made up of challenges. Every new step you make is a new start. We might be unsure, but not everything in the world is sure. What matters is getting up again and moving forward. Like the cells in our body that renew every 28 days, we’re constantly growing and changing. And with every challenge we face, we become stronger and a better version of ourselves. 

 

So, my message today is simple: be brave, take that first step, and don’t be afraid to fall. The only way to grow is to try.