CXC Examiner May 2012 - Caribbean Examinations Council

The Caribbean ExaminerAwardees waiting in the departure lounge in Trinidadon their way to TobagoAre we there yet?and made some more noise, interacting likelong-lost siblings, finding things in commonwith each other that we didn’t know one couldhave in common with another person.The top awardees programme succeededin giving us insight into the behind-the-sceneswork of CXC and strengthening our conceptof the importance of inter-regional ties. Itsurprised us with a wonderful reward for ourdiligence and let us know just how much thatdiligence is valued, inspiring us to continueto be dedicated to our education. Most ofall, it helped a band of unique young peopleto meet each other, forming bonds that willundoubtedly last beyond a lifetime.River ProvidenceWhether we like it or not, from young,expectations are thrust upon us by all around us.Go to school, try your hardest, get a job, try yourhardest, live well, and try your hardest. How onedeals with these demands is yet another thingall together. Truthfully, sometimes it’s easier toaccept these demands, other times, not to try atall. I’ve tried hard though, in my life, to do what’sbest for me and to be satisfied with my best.Therefore, it is, for want of a better, ‘wicked’ whenyour best can be the best. It is almost unbelievablethat you could accomplish so much for all yourhard work and be recognised for your efforts.For my sister and I, our trip to Trinidad andTobago was a celebration of our effort. We sawthis trip as a celebration of all of our efforts, allthe late nights studying, the gallons of coffee wedrank and the days we went to school lookinglike zombies. Had we any expectations of ourtime to come? Not really, but I suppose thatis what the draw was after we got through theinitial shock of it all. It was a chance to experiencesomething new, in a new place with new people,the awardees, who, in just four days, we grew tolove so much that it seemed that we had beenfriends forever.Looking back on our time in Trinidad andTobago, although every aspect was wonderful,it would be the camaraderie that we valued themost. The chance to meet and get to know suchwonderful people, the awardees, our wonderfulsixth form tour guides all across sweet Trinidadand Tobago and our caretakers on the trip.However, the chance to meet such brilliant,intelligent people such as the awardees, withwhom we shared so much in common, from allacross our beautiful region, embodied exactlywhat it means to be West Indian, whether theywere, from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago,Guyana or even as far away as Belize. Weembodied our region through our love of cricket,our many accents, our musical styles, our foods,how we ate them, through our favourite types ofliterature, our favourite authors and our manytraditions. Sharing and learning with so manywith whom we had so much in common, was anamazing and freeing experience.Trinidad and Tobago left us with momentsthat will last forever. From our first day exploringbig, beautiful Port-of-Spain, that seemed tovibrate with an energy that, if you listened closelyyou could hear the air hum, to meeting so manyinteresting people, so ready to share stories thatremind you of people back home and seeing thedaily grind, the daily struggle of people to live,that was almost comforting for me. I experiencedthe vibrant personalities of Trinidadians and thelovely calm, cheerfulness of Tobagonians, andmost of all, being with people you like, respectand care about. We will always remember ourdays in Trinidad and Tobago with our friends,eating lots, playing Mao and sleeping in thecorridors of the Hyatt. We can barely wait forthe reunion.www.cxc.org MAY 2012 59