Reflecting on my journey with Shine brings so many happy memories. The skills that I have learnt will be with me for the rest of my life and for that I say a heartfelt “Thank you”.
Thank you to my parents for driving me to the Shine Institute every week and giving me the opportunity to grow in such a positive way.
I am eternally grateful to Miss Anderson for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to learn such amazing skills.
Some of my favourite learnings included how to be a “People Magnet” and “The Butterfly Effect”. As Gandhi said “Be the change that you wish to see in the world”.
In a culture dominated by social media, bullying and poor self-image, the Shine Institute reinforced to me that I am beautiful and the importance of being kind, inclusive and to not be afraid to be an up stander.
I am now capable or identifying peer pressure and poor behaviour and have become a lot stronger and assertive in saying “no”.
I learnt how to behave in a job interview, how to dress appropriately and how to politely decline an invitation.
I learnt that “ums, ahs and ers” have no place in my language and I learnt the seven habits of emotionally healthy people.
My parents also learnt something too. They now know the difference between a Macaron and a Macaroon.
Last but not least I learnt to always hold my head high and look at the world straight in the eye. I am a beautiful person with the whole world ahead of me and no one can take that away from me.