Head Prefect's Valedictory Speech - Rondebosch Boys

Valedictory speech
Travis Taylor
Good morning ladies and gentlemen, and good morning to the men of E’12. I am going to
be honest here and say that at the beginning of Grade 8 I was certain that this day – the
day I say goodbye to my school and exit its doors for the very last time – would never
come, but time has a way of passing us without warning, and in the wise words of Dr
Seuss, “How did it get so late so soon?” I stand before you today as the proudest man
alive. As a man who knows what the E’12 experience is all about. As an ambassador of the
151 men in front of me and of the 16 men beside me.
While I realise that today celebrates the end of an era and the journey that has moulded
all 158 of us over the past 5 years, I would like to begin by congratulating Keaton, Stef and
the new prefect body on their achievement and by wishing them well on the year ahead.
It feels like less than a few weeks ago that I was in your position, and while the feeling of
wearing a prefect tie – or even a matric – tie takes a while to sink in, the experience ahead
will be one that you will never forget. Ever.
As I mentioned, this morning we celebrate the brotherhood that has been created over
the past five years. Although the E’12 experience has been brewing since 2008, I quite
simply do not have enough time left in my life to cover all 5 years that have shaped us and
built the platform for such an outstanding year for Bosch, so I will not begin with where
E’12 really began – the meeting in the Reeler centre where we met the enormous prefects
for the first time – but I will begin a mere 12 months ago, where E’12 took their rightful
place as leaders of Bosch.
Our first main event as E’12 was undoubtedly the unforgettable Cabaret, suitably themed
as “Amongst the Oaks”. It was on this night that we donned our aerobic attire and were
treated to, amongst others, renditions of “Pyro” by our very own rocker, Richard Stirton,
“I Need a Dollar” by Barry “Box-Fever” Box, a little rap battle between Lucky and 10-
second-Tom, “I Feel Good” featuring the brass section consisting of Michael Wood,
Christopher Knutsen and some unknown saxophone prodigy, and another song by our
own Shane Teek, for which I forget the words…
Kicking off the matric year for us, we gathered on the 11 th January – 9 months and 1 day
ago - to walk onto the matric lawn for the very first time, link arms for the very first time
and put on our matric ties for the very first time. Not long afterwards we gathered again
to collect our matric jerseys and sing our way through the E’12 song for the very first time.
These moments sparked the cascade of memories that would follow throughout the
following nine months that has led to the brotherhood we are a part of.
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Next on our calendar came the trek across the boerewors gordyn for the Paarl Athletics
fixture. It was here where our cheerleaders really showed what they were made of and
showed just how much gees E’12 had in store. It was these cheerleaders who helped make
sure that the E’12 song was sung every Friday, and it was these cheerleaders who kept the
school singing in some of the worst weather imaginable on the Piley Rees when our
brothers needed some encouragement. Vindog, while I would be lying if I said that I had
absolutely any clue what that clapping monkey in your head got up to, I would also be
lying if I said that E’12 would have been the same without you and your cheerleaders. You
guys have spread what it means to have gees and what it means to have the blue and gold
pumping through your heart, and I thank you for the weekends you spent in tights and
superhero costumes to ensure that 2012 was a year for the books.
Carrying on with the busy first term, we caught the vibe train together and took a walk
across the road for the day-night cricket, where we were out in full force. Having won the
toss and electing to win, our team felt generous enough to give the entire Bosch crowd
and the few Bishops spectators a bit of a game before finishing them off – to the delight of
all females present.
Unfortunately for Bishops, however, we gave them no such chance over the derby
weekend where our polo team finished off strong with an 8-3 win. Similarly, the cricket
team did not feel quite as generous as at the day-night fixture and were quite clearly too
interested in the affairs at the polo pool to give them a chance, bowling our rivals out for a
grand total of 27 before walking across to support at the pool.
Continuing our strong form, the first term held successes at the triangular, where Bosch
managed to take 3 of the 4 relays, and the Newlands gala, where we comfortably
outswam all the other schools and where we formed a certain relationship with the ladies
from Rhenish who were more than happy to get to know men of the Bosch variety.
These events only added to the material for our final big event of the term; Saturday Night
Live. While some will remember the prefect skit or the Christopher Walken that found
himself forgetting his lines – played, of course, by Maddy “Mainstream” Williams – and
while the ladies will most certainly remember the gunshow at the end of the evening, I
will personally not forget how even Dev’s perfect hair was not able to win the heart of the
fair bachelorette,and I will not forget the wildly inaccurate portrayal of my non-existent
“howzit, bugga” accent by Vindog.
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Moving on through the year, we are able to see that E’12 has not disappointed. The 1 st
hockey team has had an amazing season and found themselves ranked 3 rd in the country –
a truly admirable achievement. Unfortunately, injuries have meant that the rugby squad
has had its ups and downs this year, but it is truly unbelievable to have seen them grow as
a team. It has been said that victory is sweetest to those who have tasted defeat, and it
was clear this year that the Bosch men were going to give it their all on the Piley Rees to
have a taste of that victory. In weather conditions only Cape Town could offer, I was proud
to see how many men withstood the freezing temperatures and icy rain to cheer on our
team, and I was proud to see how the first XV gave their all to bring it home for Bosch. I
will never forget the feeling as the final whistle blew, knowing that these men had shown
true passion for their school by never giving up, I will never forget how the sun came out
just so that we could storm their field, and I will never forget how Danie screamed at the
top of his lungs: “thanks for pulling through guys, and we beat Bishops on the Piley Rees…
cumaaan!” The tears streaming down these men’s faces showed even more how much
the place that they know as Bosch means to them.
Before we knew it, mocks were upon us and we had to begin thinking about the more
important part of the year… the matric dance. We started head-hunting for the perfect
companions for the evening and stole numerous Bishops dates along the way by putting
the choice to the fair maidens simply: a Bishops boy, or a Bosch boy? Even though the
weather was not ideal, we were not stopped from donning our finest suits and bowler
hats, or from encouraging our dates to stick to their original, slightly shorter dresses.
Thanks have to go to Luke and Shane who helped pull everything together and who made
sure that the fact that E’12 bet big and won big was shown in the theme of Casino Royale.
A stunning night was had by all, and let’s just say that the after-party was a suitable end to
the evening and that we did indeed make it “’til the break of dawn, yo!”… some of us,
anyway.
This year would not have been as successful, however, were it not for the contribution of
some outstanding people. Firstly, a thank you must go to Mr Simpson, who, although only
joining us for one year of the E’12 experience, has played a massive role in guiding us and
has played an integral part in the enjoyment of our matric year. I would also like to thank
our grade head, Mr Harmuth, for his guidance over the year. Not one of us will ever forget
how you made us link arms on the first day of this year, or how we repeated that at the
matric dance to bring the year full circle. It was your influence, sir, that kept the grade
working as a unit, and I’m sure we will all have a memory or two of your humour that
became a part of the grade assemblies.
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To the rest of the staff that have shared memories with E’12, I would like to thank you. It
has been said that there are two types of education: one that teaches you how to make a
living, and the other that teaches you how to live. I can say that the contact I have had
with every one of my teachers here has helped me grow as an individual and that I have
been taught how to live by the staff at this wonderful school, not just how to make a
living.
To my parents: we spoke at the end of last year, knowing that this year would be one of
the most enjoyable of my life, but we got wrong just how quickly it would go. Thank you
for putting up with the ridiculous hours that have come with this year for me, and thank
you for making sure I had my own space when I needed to get things done. Thank you for
not complaining when I chose my school over my studies, and thank you for letting me
follow my own path this year, not questioning me when I promised – on numerous
occasions – that I could cope with what I had on my plate.
To my prefects: gents, we started the year not really knowing which way was up, but we
have grown as a unit into one of the most efficient prefect bodies Bosch has ever had. I
thank you all for the guidance and help you have given me throughout the year, and I
thank you for the memories we have shared. I will not forget the dancing that was done to
Levels – before Strybis hit his trance phase – or the discussions in the proom about the
weekend’s events. I will not forget the morning meetings or Blobby’s renditions of
Breakfast at Tiffany’s. I will not forget your unresponsiveness every single time I blurted
out a “Hoorah!” to end the meetings or the tactical bunking duties that were used to get
out of the Afrikaans lessons. And I will not forget, of course, our final event together last
night. I will never forget any of you and you will all remain my brothers forever.
Meneer Nel, it has been the greatest pleasure working with you this year – your 12 th year
with the prefect bodies. Your quiet voice of reason has guided us in the right direction,
while your blunt sense of humour in the prefects’ room has ensured that we have stayed
in line as a prefect body. The prefects will not forget the memories shared with you in
Greyton or at the prefects’ dinner, in the proom deciding who will do the reading – Jacob
– or how we could approach you for absolutely anything. The passion you share for our
school is immeasurable, sir, and the functioning of our prefect group is directly accredited
to this.
To my deputy, Danie: you have been an unbelievable help to me this year. Starting from
the expedition at the end of last year, our friendship has grown far more than I could ever
have expected. I thank you for your guidance and for the laid-back attitude that has kept
me grounded this year, and I thank you for putting up with the late-night conversations
we have had together.
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Danie, while I personally think that one of the scariest experiences would certainly be
waking up from an operation to the sight of you as my doctor, I know that you will go on
to do great things, and I know that I will be there to join you. Thank you, Oom, I could not
have asked for a better deputy.
To the men of E’12: thank you for the experience of a lifetime. While we will shortly be
leaving the memorial hall for the last time and will never again share events on the matric
lawn, will never again share a bio or accounting lesson together, or will never again stand
alongside a field again screaming our lungs out in support of our fellow E’12 men, we have
an abundance of memories that will forever fuel the love we feel for this school.
No-one will forget the grade braais at the start and end of the year, or the way we stood
in the pouring rain to sing the E’12 song. No-one will forget the gees on the buses to Paarl
Athletics or the way we all felt when we walked onto the matric lawn for the first time.
And, of course, no-one will forget jumping about in a mildly coordinated manner to the
trance music on the matric lawn – in broad daylight, might I add – whilst wearing a variety
of women’s clothing.
Gents, today is not the last day of your life; only the last day of your life so far. When you
guys look at your matric ties again, I want you to remember what it has meant to you to
be a part of the E’12 experience and to have put on that tie every morning for 10 months
of your life. I want you to remember how you gave your all in your matric year so that you
could have the best possible 12 months of your lives, and I want you to remember the
gees that we showed to the rest of the school. Remember the trancing, remember the
touchies and remember the lessons in which absolutely no work took place. Remember
cabaret, remember SNL, remember the matric dance, and remember the feeling you have
right now. These memories belong to E’12 and no-one can take them away from us.
E’12, I leave you with a quote: “There comes a time when the world gets quiet and the
only thing left is your own heart. So you’d better learn the sound of it. Otherwise you’ll
never understand what it’s saying.” Gents, I have shared some of the most amazing
experiences with you, and what I can hear my heart telling me as the world goes quiet is
that it is made of blue and gold. It tells me that I am a brother to every single one of you. It
tells me that the Bosch tree that has been etched onto my heart will never be removed.
And it tells me that every single one of you feels exactly the same way as I do.
Thank you, gents, for allowing me to lead the greatest group of men to ever walk through
to corridors of Bosch.
Here’s to the men who never backed down; here’s to the men I have shared a lifetime’s
worth of memories with; here’s to the men of E’12; and here’s to my brothers. For the last
time, gents… for the last time, men of E’12, Altius et Latius.
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