SUNBURST YOUTH CAMP 2017

I never would have ever thought that I would have got so close to people from so many countries so quickly. In just a span of 5 days, the friendships and bonds that have been created; I’m sure are going to last me a lifetime…

A group of 8 students accompanied by Mrs. Kapur had set out to go in high spirits to Singapore to attend the Sunburst Youth Camp Program. In order to encourage inter cultural understanding, we were divided into groups with each group comprising of members of different countries. We participated in a series of team building and leadership activities like team golf, commando bridge, a discovery challenge around the city, to name a few. These activities got us closer to our teammates and made us realise the importance of each member of a team – A sound leadership message. The time spent with our teammates interacting and figuring out the tasks also helped us understand the multitude of South Asian cultures around us.

We were required to present our country via a booth presentation. We chose The Banyan Tree, the national tree of India, as our theme to represent the different facets of Indian culture. While the roots of the tree represented our indigenous knowledge system in a particular field, the branches showed the progress we have made in that field today. While the roots kept us grounded, the branches supported our advances. Eight such diverse fields, ranging from Indian cuisine to Indian dance and literature, were chosen. A shloka taught to young dancers during their initiation to classical dance was performed, while traditional Indian sweets and savory snacks were served to the guests. A demonstration of the Surya Namaskar was also done at the stall.

We were also required to present a dance reflecting the Indian Culture for which we demonstrated a medley consisting of Yoga asanas, along with two classical Indian dance forms followed by the celebrations of an Indian wedding. The National Flag was showcased as the finale. The dances by other countries had left me spellbound – Philippinos with their traditional tribal dance, Singapore with their dance that virtually managed to take us around their city state and Thailand which demonstrated a spectacular performance of incredible martial arts techniques!

This camp taught us not only about the cultures of various countries but also that all of us, although from different backgrounds, need to be united for our collective success. It taught us the spirit of discipline and teamwork, without which no nation; none of us, can move forward. Singapore has reached where it has due to a disciplined way of life.

I have the pleasure of thanking those without which this camp would not have been possible. Thank you to Mrs.Isaacs, Mrs. Mayadas and Mrs. Samuels for giving us this opportunity of a lifetime.

Thank you to Mrs.Kapur for choreographing our dance presentation, accompanying us on our trip, and for always being super excited to take boomerang videos with us! Thank you to Mrs. Shukla for coordinating this trip for us.

We left this small country with gifts that would last a lifetime… the friendship fostered amongst all of us. To quote what Mr. Leo Tan (the chairperson of the camp) said at the final bonfire, “As the flame of this fire fades, let it ignite the flame of friendship around you…". For this we will be eternally grateful.

TEAM SYC, 2017