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Jonathan Tooke
South Africa and really should result in a better and happier lifestyle yet , strangely enough , I am not all that much happier .
Happiness is a complicated thing . Some people spend their lives chasing money because they believe that wealth will result in their happiness . Others chase love , or success in their career fields . It is up to each individual to decide what it is that will make them truly happy and devote their lives to that cause .
I have come to realise that you should not let the government , leaders of the country or even the internet speed decide your state of mind . Happiness can be achieved in so many different ways . It can come from braaing with friends , or shouting wildly at the TV screen when the Bokke miss a tackle . It can come from good quality relationships with friends and family – and it can even come from lighting candles when the power goes out . From a different perspective , I can see that these are some of the more important things in life .
J Tooke ( Sixth Form )
From the top of a waterfall in the Yosemite National Park .
Jonathan returned to South Africa on 29 June 2016 after a year of schooling in Houston , Texas . He is a Sixth Former who enrolled to participate in the Prestigious Gold Award Programme in September 2014 . A Direct Gold entrant takes a minimum of 18 months to complete and Jonathan completed the award in April 2016 while he was on an exchange programme . In order to get the Gold award Jonathan completed a minimum of 12 months of sport , 12 months of skill , over 72 hours of service , a four night five day hike and a Residential Project consisting of five days . He recorded all these activities and then put them into a portfolio along with assessors ’ reports and all his evidence . He was invited to attend the National Gold ceremony in Johannesburg at the end of April 2016 , but was unfortunately still away on exchange and not able to join in at this great event . At the Gold Ceremony the Gold Award holders received their certificates from His Royal Highness Prince Edward , the Earl of Essex . Prince Edward was at the ceremony because The President ’ s Award is a part of the Duke of Edinburgh International Award . At this award ceremony there were 14 other KZN Gold participants from various schools such as Hilton , Michaelhouse , Crawford College , St Anne ’ s , St John ’ s and The Wykeham Collegiate . There are currently other College boys who are working towards the Award on either the Bronze or Silver level of the programme .
Admiring the view of the magnificent Grand Canyon .
My New Perspective
The eye has always been regarded as the universal symbol for vision . However , vision is a very subjective thing . People view events and situations very differently and sometimes even change their viewpoint altogether . I have experienced such a change and would like to share my new perspective on our country , South Africa .
Many South Africans speak poorly of our country . We spend much of our time complaining about an endless array of things : from corruption to incompetent leaders , from load shedding to supersonic taxi drivers and even those days when the Bokke just don ’ t seem to be performing as they should . It makes one disheartened to be constantly reminded of how the country should be doing better ( both on and off the field ).
I have to admit , these complaints affected me . I began to lose hope in our country ’ s future and stories of greener grass elsewhere in the world attracted me . I began to think that I wanted to leave the country at some future point in my adult life as I saw myself as having a more prosperous and happier future somewhere else in the world . This is one of the many things that prompted me to take up the opportunity to spend a year on exchange in America . I wanted to know what it was really like to live somewhere else and I was most certainly granted my wish .
Since then , I have spent the better half of a year in the gigantic city of Houston and it has given me a completely different international perspective . It is certainly true that the USA is better managed and yes , it is also true that unemployment and crime rates are lower . It is even overwhelmingly evident that their internet speeds are faster ! All of these things are improvements on
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