My Experience at Silver – Emily Luck
Deciding to enrol for my Silver Duke of Edinburgh Award was one of the best decisions I made in Year 10. At the time I was nervous but also excited for the challenges ahead of me. We sorted ourselves into teams and then the fun began!! As a skill I developed my knowledge in textiles, I volunteered at a local swim school and for physical I attended swimming. On reflection, I feel I gained the most from volunteering. It took me on an exciting journey developing confidence and enabling me to grow as an individual. The best part was seeing that I was able to help make a difference to young children in assisting them to learn and develop in their swimming techniques.
Each expedition consisted of three days walking and two nights camping. The practice was in the Peak District and the qualifying expedition was in Brecon Beacons. No one could have predicted the weather, we were faced with torrential rain, thunder, lightning, wind and then sun all just in three days!!!!
Teamwork was an important part of the expedition and the realisation that each individual brought a different talent to the group. Bringing all these talents together resulted in us not getting lost (well not too much!!), putting up tents, cooking and sharing food and most importantly supporting and encouraging each other.
We walked for miles and each day brought different obstacles and weather conditions, making some days very slippery but this all added to the fun – a good sense of humour was required especially when you are face first in the mud!!!! The final day was the biggest achievement when we all climbed Pen Y Fan, the highest peak in South Wales. The immense feeling of achievement will never leave me and was worth all the fun of sleeping in a tent in the worst thunder storm, walking through ankle deep mud,dealing with challenges in the team, cooking, craving a drink other than water and most importantly developing and making new friendships.
Achieving my Silver Duke of Edinburgh award has been one of the best and most challenging experiences of my life. It has helped me learn to deal with conflict, keep going even when it’s so tough, conquer my own insecurities and has made me realise I can achieve things. I will never ever forget this experience and I am looking forward to the challenges and experiences ahead of me for Gold.