Shad Valley Waterloo – summer of a lifetime

So here goes.

Well, what is Shad?

Shad Valley
a month-long enrichment program at a Canadian university focused on science and leadership. Every year, 500 high school students from coast to coast (sometimes beyond!) gather at one of ten beautiful campuses to… do what?!

When I boarded that plane to Waterloo, I expected lectures and workshops, thinking of Shad as a chance to travel to a new city and experience university life.

I did not expect to make unicorn hats out newspaper, dive into freezing Great Lake water, sing acapella, be thrown into the air (and survive), do sunset yoga on a cliff, or eat as many cookies as I did… And I will never forget how ecstatic and honoured I felt that first night, stepping into the Great Hall with all those strangers (back then) and a huge, ridiculous smile on my face.

While Shad proved to be the intellectual challenge it promised to be, this did not happen the way I expected (to be honest, I didn’t know what to expect).

The lively discussions and hands-on workshops covered everything from the scale issues of superheroes to why Sherlock should be a doctor, from digital photography to mathematical sculptures, from quantum physics to river testing, from communicating with children who can’t move to communicating with buildings to communicating in Gibberish. I learned to guesstimate the mass of goose poop on campus (too much), to tie my shoelaces in under 10 seconds, and to tackle problems with a designer’s mindset.

Shad was a first, in so many ways.

For some, Shad was a first rock climb or a first camping trip, a first swim or first painted nail, a first time being MC, a first love, or a first cup of bubble tea. Or most likely – a combination of a whole bunch of these firsts. Shad includes a first solo performance and my first time living away from home for this long – my first time sharing with a roommate (the best roommate I could’ve asked for, I might add).

I’ve realized that when I take a little leap of faith, the community will take a bigger one for me. I’ve learned that growth only happens through change – only outside the comfort zone. To reach our potentials, we must live intentionally.

We were challenged in so many ways – all within the intense time frame of 4 weeks. From a Design Project tackling the issues of childhood obesity to planning and running a 30-year Shad Waterloo Anniversary to explaining to VIPs what I’m currently trying to explain here, Shad has made me realized just how much is possible within me… within all of us.

At Shad, there was a sense of… default appreciation – each one of us was talented and extraordinary, but in many different ways. I knew I had something to learn from everyone there. In just a month’s time, we were able to build (from scratch) the strongest community I’ve ever been part of.

We are music synthesizers, competitive tennis players, yogis, application programmers, professional level pianists, and nail artists. We are singer-songwriters, basketball pros, Model United Nations delegates, violinists, Rubik’s cubers, and soccer stars.

We are scientists, doctors, engineers, mathematicians, professors, entrepreneurs, and designers. We are Tetris gods, jugglers, doodlers, door-holders, pizza deliverers, superheroes, Foosball champions, shufflers, dinosaurs, pillows, and stalkers.

The strange phenomenon is that at once, Shad is deeply humbling yet equally confidence-building. Being stuck in a tight-knit community with some of the “brightest young minds in Canada” for a month is truly inspiring; Shads are such a ridiculously talented bunch! The staff, too – energetic, passionate, wise, hilarious, caring, and reflective – these are the kinds of people I hope to aspire to.

We’ve shared so much together – all of our dreams, hopes, and fears; our blood, sweat, and tears. I will never forget how blessed I felt to be there with each and every Shad and staff – that final night, all those faces I’ve come to know and love illuminated by candlelight…

At the same time, I will never forget how empty and worn-out I felt the following morning, as the good-byes began… But even more than that, I will never forget those strong shoulders to lean on, wiping away each others’ tears, enveloping and piling on top of each other with those bear hugs that just make everything better… I will never forget the smiles, the laughter, the music of our voices joined together…

Shads go by various names and take on many roles – but to me, they’ll always be one word: family.

(Pictures thanks to Ryan Voisin & Richard Liu.)