1. Brittney Wong Paradise Valley High School

2.  Due to some unexpected events, the bus ride ended up taking about 8 hours but we still made the best of it

3.  The first thing we did was get sorted into cabin teams and our ACTeams. In my cabin team I happened to have a girl on an exchange from the Netherlands, another girl from Denmark, and another that is going to Romania this year. It was really interesting hearing about where they came from and what it’s like compared to the United States.

6.  The very first activity we participated in was called “high ropes”. We basically had to climb a rock wall all the way up and then zip line to the bottom. It sounds easy in theory but when you’re the person actually doing it, it really isn’t.  When it was my turn, I quickly climbed the wall but when I got to the top and looked down, I was terrified. It’s a very hard thing to just trust and take that leap of faith but once you do what comes next is amazing. Facing that fear inside yourself and believing that taking that chance will be alright is what truly is important.

7.  Already tagged Already tagged

8.  This station was all about figuring out what type of person you are and how to communicate well with others with different personality types. It was fun while at the same time I learned that the way you approach someone can effect how they react immensely.

9.  The difference between low ropes and high ropes was that high ropes was about facing your fears and trusting yourself whereas low ropes is all about being able to trust your own teammates to catch you when you fall.  The Trust Fall: We had to stand on a ladder facing backward while our team had their arms extended and just fall backwards onto them. The most nerve wrecking part was looking back and looking down because the longer you stood there the harder it was.  The Blind Walk: We broke into pairs and one of the partners had to wear a blindfold while the other had to vocally guide them through the foliage. You were not able to touch them and it was a very weird feeling not being able to see where you were going or understand what “watch out for that over there” meant.

11.  The volleyball tournament we played in was one of my favorite things we did. Since not many people new how to play it involved a lot of communication, encouragement, teamwork, and just believing in yourself. I have a lot of experience in volleyball because I play competitively but I don’t think I have ever been more proud of a team than I was that day.

13.  We had quite a few guest speakers but one that really inspired me was Sandy Havir. She coincidentally was my mentor as well. Sandy shared her story with us and taught us that no matter how far-fetched, we CAN do it. We just need to find the champion within.

14.  The last day was full of skits, case challenges, awards, and lots of goodbyes.  Skits: They were truly amazing. I enjoyed most of them and I think that some of them of a true knack for theater. It not only got the message across about their topic, but they added some comedic relief to the mix.  Case Challenges: The case challenge was supposed to be a fundraiser idea to raise money to get sanitation filters for clean water in places that are not as privileged in having such things. My team ended up winning with our Dodge Ball Tournament idea.

15. Volleyball Award RYLA Award

17.  Heading home was very saddening because by Sunday we had all finally become comfortable with each other and it was already the end. However, for the people who shared the same bus back we got to spend more time together and talk about the weekend. It's funny because it was quite the opposite of how the trip originally started.

19.  I am so glad I had the opportunity to go to RYLA and meet so many great people. It was an amazing experience and after going through all of those stations and listening to all of the inspirational speakers, I feel like I can truly do anything.