A quick update :)

Hey!
Things have been going pretty well lately. School has resumed and despite the fact that it’s literally the last year of my “compulsory” schooling…it’s been pretty breezy so far!
I thoroughly enjoy all of my subjects, I’m not (yet) bogged down by mountains of homework and the bitchiness levels have remained comfortably minimal.

Over all, I think I’ve had a school-related revelation.

If you just get on with your life and the things that you want to get out of the day/class/lunchtime/spare…you don’t generally resent that time, because you’re remaining occupied and you’re not SO stressed about whether you’re fitting in or standing out.

I’m forever grateful for the friends that I have at school, and I know that come lunchtime or in spares I’m not having to awkwardly sit alone, because I have people to be around. But I’m also not frightened of sitting at the front of the class despite that being “nerdy”, and I’m not bothering to come up with seating plans for my classes.

It’s super liberating, and I’m so glad I’ve discovered it!

 

On another note, TED talk stuff has been moving…well…slowly. I just haven’t found/made the time to dedicate myself to it. I will though, definitely. I’m looking forward to it 🙂

I’ll be in the local newspaper in 2 days…it’s a surreal and crazy feeling, but I can’t wait.

 

Always,

Alice

And so it begins

It’s funny that every great war, battlescene, one-on-one duel or “self-improvement ninja class” scenes in movies always tend to either begin or end with the sentence “And so it begins”

It’s like our minds have already grasped the fact that something novel is happening, but we must verbalise it in order for it to become reality, and reality can be tackled….ideas cannot.

So as I opened my eyes thismorning, I (without even realising what I was doing) mumbled those 4 words into the silence of my lightening room.

Year 12. It begins.

 

But before it begins, I have a few promises I want to make myself;

• Value the people who stick by your side. You never know what’s going to happen this year, but it could get to the point where you need a trustworthy shoulder to lean on.
• Try your best, don’t freak yourself out. In the end, my best is the best I can do, and I will be satisfied with it. No more comparison nonsense.
• Don’t define yourself with a number. NO! I will never ever let myself do this, and if I see anyone doing this, they’d better watch out because they’re about to get a face full of angry-alice screaming ‘YOU ARE WORTH MORE!’
• Continue enjoying what I’m good at. I will keep on with my extra activities, I won’t push them aside, because they make me who I am. And I’m glad for that.

 

So, before I step into the car for the last ‘first time’, I will keep these promises in my mind.

Heck yes I’m scared, I’m terrified! But what I’ve learnt is no matter how dire a situation becomes, GRACE always has room to move.

 

I wish everyone all the best.

Always,

Alice

Why I wear a ring

Recently at my school, there’s been some hub-bub about my wearing of a ring on my left hand. Side note…it’s not a wedding ring, it sits comfortably on my middle finger.

Traditionally, my school has always said that they will “crack down” on any uniform infringements, however seeing as I’ve worn this ring for at least a year and a half now with no serious penalties, I didn’t think it would cause any harm to keep wearing it this year.

But no…I had to get stuck with that one particular teacher who has decided that she will find it personally offensive for me to wear such a ring.

She told me to take it off about a week ago, and I complied, however I explained what had happened to my mum and she then e-mailed said teacher explaining what she thought of the whole situation.

Basically, my ring not only signifies family (it’s knotted and coiled…like family ties) and comes from a special place (where my Granddad did his jewelers apprenticeship in London), but it also signifies a promise I’ve made with my parents.

Yeah… that’s right… let’s just get it out in the open.

I’m not having sex before marriage.

 

I suppose this whole concept has just been so widely accepted by myself for such a long time that it never occurred to me that it might actually be somewhat of an oddity in modern society.
Yes…the world has drastically changed over the past few decades, and the simple decision to wait until marriage to have sex may now be a dying tradition.

Not that I’m condemning anyone who chooses to do so…of course I don’t see why people don’t consider the benefits of waiting…but if I spent all my time trying to correct the worlds wrongs, there would be no time left to encourage what I think they’re shining in.

That’s where the issue comes in. Can’t we all just accept each others own personal decisions?

I would like to say that I’m not a judgmental person. Sure..things get on my nerves (a lot) and I haven’t yet perfected the art of making it not obvious to those people, but I believe it comes from an honest and genuine sense of loyalty to that person and the best possible intentions for their lives.

But I’m not God. (unfortunately)

People make decisions, they do things that I don’t agree with (constantly) and it really really frustrates me…but then I remember that I’ve made decisions in the past and present that I know people may not agree with, but thankfully they’ve still accepted me for who I am and what I stand for.

I suppose what I’m trying to convey is that wasting time trying to change peoples “faults”, or what we perceive to be “faults”, is just that….a waste.

It’s a lesson that I have to continually  come back to…seriously like every day. But it has also encouraged me over the years that it is indeed possible to learn to accept people for who they are. And if it doesn’t work out, we can still live in perfect harmony with one another, just perhaps not in close contact.

 

Life is full of decisions, good and bad, but it’s the ones that you stick to that are of most value in our lives. After all, if we are not defined by what we stand up for, what are we defined by?

 

 

Until soon,

Alice

Leadership

So, I guess this might turn into a rant, but here goes.

Yesterday was the day were nine of us year 11s bravely stood up on stage to give a two minute speech on why we should be elected head girl for 2014 (kind of like a school captain).

I’d like to say I’ve always been good at giving speeches…in fact I really love them. I get this weird rush whenever I have to speak in front of a crowd.

But I am not, however, the “funny one”.

And unfortunately at my school, when it comes to head girl speeches, you have to aim at being memorable, and memorable means funny.

I was last of nine, and the lead up to me was literally terrifying. Speech after speech left people laughing and roaring with applause. I could see the words “she was awesome” forming on everyone’s lips. It was enough to make me want to get off stage! But I kept telling myself “it’s no good now, your speech is written, you just have to do it”.

And so finally it’s my turn, I guess I had a lot of expectation riding on my shoulders, and it went exactly how I thought it would in that moment. Not very well.

The past 12 months have really been a lead up to that moment, whether or not I’d realized it, but it was such an important role to me and afterwards I realized how much I’d let myself down.

I knew people would be looking for in that speech and I didn’t do it. It’s a shame.

But enough of that soppy story. What’s done is done and its really out of my hands. Voting is next Tuesday, and to be frank, I don’t see anyone choosing me over the wonderfully charismatic girls before me. I kid you not, I am SO excited for them, they must be on such a buzz! And whatever happens, all those girls deserve it and next year is going to be awesome.

But it left me a little drained. Well a lot more than a little. I cried for a while. Not “oh poor me” crying…(well a tiny bit of that) it was more just the overwhelming nature of…well…everything!

Perhaps I’m not cut out for it, although I hate to admit it. But perhaps I need to take this as a lesson to just give things a go, but don’t be disappointed.

I really do hope there are more chances for me. You see..my personality is one where I hate talking about myself and showing my talents…but it’s meant that I’ve missed out a few times. I long for that place of leadership…I really do. And I don’t think anyone recognizes that yet…

So I’ll leave you with something that I hope you can take away: don’t miss opportunities!!
For the sake of all those who have….don’t!! Trust me, you’ll be better off if you take that leap of faith.

Until soon,
Alice