After Hyper Island Way Week

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Hi there everyone, I had an extremely hard time last week!, i.e. Hyper Island Way Week. Wait. It’s not that bad. It’s positive.

This photo is the last day of Hyper Island Way Week. We’re holding our first presentation that we made on the first day. Thanks Roger for this amazing photo :D

After I woke up this morning, I asked myself ‘How long haven’t I felt like this?‘. I don’t really know. The closest feeling might be when I was a freshman in my first year at university (In Thailand, we have an activity/tradition/culture/whatever… to welcome first-year students which normally results in both negative and positive ways depending on each person.), but that’s totally different from now. I’m so overwhelming. Last week, there were a lot of feelings and emotions that mixed together, but I could say that everyone in this program or in this school felt in the same way.

Before last week, I felt…scared, nervous, insecure, serious, uncomfortable, shy and small, but 5 days past, things get better. I feel…more confident, more comfortable, less shy, less nervous, secure, relaxed, safe and warm. I wonder how they(HI people) make me feel like this within 5 days. What an amazing solution! I might not say that there is no pressure and tension in every activities. Everyday was so intense but everybody had a willing to go to school, I guess. I can say I was so exhausted everyday. All I wanted to do after school is to go to bed.

So, what my new friends and I did at school last week? There were…energizers or games (not a game console or computer game, for sure), talking, sharing and group works…ummm, actually, there were times to think about myself/ourselves. We call ‘Reflection’. We did ‘Feedback’-Positive feedback and all of them will become our cultures. For clarification, we sat in a big circle and talked about their own feelings. We shared what we felt, what we learnt and what we thought. It’s not mandatory, but at one moment, I could say that we wanted to say something… It’s like everyone felt encouraged to share, and there always be some people listening. That’s so great.

For my personal experience, as I said that I was shy, nervous and… on the very first day. I tried to open and speak out more and more everyday. When we did the feedback, I was so surprised that some people saw my effort. I was so proud, grateful, grown-up and…so much. I can’t explain.

Those sound simple, don’t they? No, they would be impossible if we are NOT ‘open-minded’. Open-mindedness is the key to study/live here. Hyper Island is not an ordinary school. Someone said that this is a ‘life school’. It’s not a theoretical learning. It’s a practical learning. That’s why we have to share with each other because we are different. We can’t live alone but we have to work in group.

I could say that last week is one of the most valuable experiences in my life so far, and I appreciate that.

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Best