Over these last two years of CAS I think I have achieved to create quite a diverse program with varying activities that have resulted in development of different kinds of areas. My main activities have mostly been linked to horse riding and Interact Club but I have also done many other smaller things, like help out ARTSCO at school events, gone to Habitat for Humanity and tried out their house building, done a season of volleyball and track as well, among other things.
I think that I have been able to both help myself and the community around me. Especially for Interact, almost everything we do is do directly help the people of our surroundings. We have visited orphanages and donated food, money, clothes and toys as well as tried to advertise the club to our society so that the club will be successful also int the future. Also the trips with Habitat for Humanity have really been great in helping the community and building houses. By participating in such activites I have got to see happiness and try new things, but also experienced the poor conditions that many people actually live in. It makes me appreciate my life situation so much more and me greatful for getting a good education, live in a nice house etc. This makes me realize even more how important it is for us, who have all this, to help and share with people who don’t. The gaps in today’s society, all over the world, are huge in some areas and we need to even them out. The physiotherapy that I have been doing for the last 1.5 years is another example of where I am lucky. Not everyone has time or money to spend on both surgery and then rehabilitation. Physiotherapy was important to me also because it made me improve my commitment to something that was not that much fun. Just as with homework or projects that are not the most fun and perhaps takes some time, I know that I tend to push tasks in front of me instead of just dealing with them straight away. For physiotherapy this was not an option, because if I wanted to start riding again, I needed to rebuild balance and strength and that is impossible to do in one day. The exercises seemed stupid as they were so simple but once I started doing them I realized that it was harder than it appeared and that I really needed it.
Other activities, in particular sports like track, riding and volleyball, were also able to get me to organize my time better and focus as the time spent on sport had to be combined both homework and some free time. My efficiency definitely improved over these two years. I have always enjoyed sports, partially because of the feeling of a team. Working together is essential for any sport, even horse riding where you and the horse must be a team, and this means to trust others as well as take responsibility for your part of the task. Of course the ability to work with others is very important for everything in life and what I really see as one of my strengths now a days is the ability to give everyone a chance and work with people that normally don’t understand or agree with.
Cas has given me the opportunity to try new things as well as get better at things that I already do. Both track and volleyball were new sports to me and required commitment and regularity. I enjoyed volleyball the most but also track was fun as I got to learn tactics of running and improved my fitness level. These sports were additionally helpful in making me take losing in a better way – it is simply an indication of what you need to work on. This I could apply to my everyday life and to school. Also the creativity actions such as the IC Nairobi Mural Painting trip, the creativity strand on the Senior Trip and the mural painting for Interact Club was something new to me as I do not take Art as an IB class. However I found that it is great fun and in the future I will probably continue with some sort of art as I think I have developed some artistic skills, but mostly it is as very entertaining activity that at the same time can help people around you.
In conclusion I am happy that I have done this community service as I have gotten a better understanding of myself, both my limitations and strengths, and seen how I best can use them. By doing this I have also become more aware that this applies to everyone and that team work is based on people contributing with things they know well. At the same time it is possible to develop your more limited areas of ability. It has been a little challenging to do all the required activities but I have pulled through at times of personal weakness and hopefully become a more aware and responsible person.
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