Dec
13
Written by:
Current Students
12/13/2011 9:59 AM
I remember my first days at Albert like they were yesterday. I remember walking up the long stairs and down the long hall. I remember meeting my first roommate, Fernando, or ‘Side-show Bob’ as we used to call him. The first year was a year of many firsts for me. I met my first Mexican and Russian students. And who can forget Eman, the first rapping Kenyan! Throughout my years at Albert there have been many friends that have come and gone, like busboys in a restaurant. One of the great privileges of boarding at Albert College is that you get to meet people from all over the world. An extension of that privilege is that you end up making friends from all over the world, friends that will provide a lifetime of great memories and smiles for years to come.
When I first arrived at Albert College, my sense of responsibility was far from polished. I was coming from an environment and peer group where academic achievement was ranked somewhere below surfing, sailing and swimming, and just above art class. Albert College quickly helped me to learn some very important life lessons. If you want to succeed you have to be focused. Also, if you want to do well academically you have to have perseverance. You have to learn to organize your time and commitments. Albert is a very busy place which presents many opportunities to learn and to grow. Failure to recognize this and all that the school has to offer will result in missed opportunities to achieve your full potential. Albert College helped instill a drive in me to do well and to succeed, a drive that I have witnessed in so many other students before me. Not only was I driven to succeed academically, I was also driven to do well in athletics and residence and to be a better all-round person.
Albert College has also taught me that I need to be accountable for my actions. Whether it involved missing dinner, lights out or more serious transgressions, Albert College has taught me that you and only you are responsible for your actions. I like to think that during my time at the school, I have learned from my mistakes and learned the value of responsibility.
I could go on and on about the many things that I have learned and will take away with me when I graduate this year. The most important things will be my many accomplishments and, of course, the friends and memories I have made in residence. Albert College has welcomed me and made me feel at home. I was only 15 years old when I arrived and I had no idea what to expect. Within the first few days I knew I had found my home away from home… my happy place! The sense of companionship that I found in Baker House (junior boys’ residence) was also found in Graham Hall (senior boys’ residence). The Graham Hall brotherhood provided me with the support and friendship that I have come to value so much.
Thank you for reading my chapel chat. I hope it has encouraged you to make the most of your time here at Albert College just as I have.
- R.L., Grade 12 Student & Prefect