12 Jun 2014

The Teenage Years

As my 20th birthday rapidly approaches, I start to think about the past 7 years. The lessons I have learnt, the adventures I have experienced and the memories I have made. It's safe to say I have had some unforgettable ones... 6 countries, 2 schools, 2 boyfriends, 1 festival and countless friends. Here are some of my favourite memories...




My Year 8 School Trip to London... I can't believe it was so long ago now! I still remember taking my disposable camera and clicking away not realising my finger was blocking the shutter! This was so exciting at the time... Staying in a hotel with my friends, exploring the streets of London. The London Eye! I also went to my first West End theatre productions here. We Will Rock You and Blood Brothers.. Absolutely incredible.


At the young age of 13 came my first Duke of Edinburgh Expeditions... I believe this photo was taken during my silver expedition and good Lord was it hard, the bags... so heavy... your team mates... so annoying. the maps... so confusing. The photo first photo in this post was taken just after we had got back on route after being 7km out. Luckily there was a farmer in one of his fields and not only did he point us in the right direction, he also gave us a lift on his quad bike!
 

This was the first photo shoot I ever did! I was chosen to do this as I'm a relatively experienced rider and had "swishable" hair... It's so funny looking back and seeing how young I look!


I still remember this day so clearly... Myself and a couple friends didn't qualify for study leave, so what were we to do?! Obviously sign ourselves out of school and skive. We spent the glorious afternoon soaking up the sun by Cheddar Reservoir.. I do have a confession though, a police car drove past us and my first reaction was to run away. BLUNDER!



My 16th Birthday!!! One of my best parties ever... We had a massive waterfight and BBQ in my garden. I was so lucky that the weather had magically turned around on the day after a week of rain. 


Those high school house parties... Thinking you were top whilst drinking your WKD's and acting wasted. One of my good friends Abi had a holiday cottage by her house and we often had parties in there. Shame we nearly broke everything including one of the bathroom sinks. 


Avalon Camps! One of the best things I have ever done. Avalon Camps is a camp for disadvantaged children from Bristol. The kids were genuine and honest despite their backgrounds. When it came to the end of camp all of them were crying because they didn't want to go home. It was completely heartbreaking. I still plan on doing Avalon Camps again.


Next up, Glastonbury Festival. WHAT AN EXPERIENCE! And the first time I got to see my Dad on my actual birthday for a long time. (He goes to Glastonbury every year).


PUTSBUROUGH! What a week. A week of camping, surfing and time with my best friends. We had such a good circle with us...Even if one of my friends did let a gas cannister explode in her face. Also managed to tick off skinny dipping on my bucket list!


My last prom... Also the eve of my 18th. Held on Weston Pier, it was a nice way to celebrate the end of education with people I have spent the majority of my life with. And a nice way to say bye to my soon to be ex-boyfriend. 


My first Hollister social! This was super exciting for me.. After working there for two years I was finally allowed to go out with them and participate in these wild socials I had heard so much about... If only I knew how wild, it was the start of a new era in my life and I made some of the best friends I have ever had.



One of the best days I had during Camp America! Our first day off from our units... One of the barn girls, Kim, had a few horses in stables a couple of miles away from the school. So we eagerly all crammed into Lara's car and headed off. The horses were all Western so we did an awesome trail ride where we got to gallop to our hearts galore and each had a go at barrel racing (it is much more difficult than it looks). It also helps that whilst we waited for the second group to return, there were some adorable kittens to play with. 


And days with my best girl and boy are always good memories...


The highlights of the past 7 years in a nutshell! Minus the holidays of course, which were all unforgettable. I hope the twenties are as good to me as the teens have been, I am so grateful for the experiences I have had so far and cannot wait to see where my adventures take me next. 

I'll leave you with 7 lessons.
-Karma Exists
-Education is important
-Keeping fit feels good
-Hard work pays off (unless your manager's are mean)
-You can talk to your parents about anything
-Your real friends will shine through
-Everything happens for a reason

Until next time...

- S xx




No comments:

Post a Comment