It was not so painless waking up the next morning to continue along the journey, however, and we begrudg- ingly endured some arduous uphill climbs, wishing that we’d paid more attention during our planning of the route. In spite of this, our group spirit was growing. Without encouraging each another to persevere up the mountains, I’m not sure we’d have made it to our final campsite for the last night together. It was then that I think we realised just how much fun we had all had, and we had many pleasant hours of light-hearted jokes and reminiscences about the previous days, before going into our separate tents for the rejuvenation required for the next day. The final push was quite choppy, but nevertheless my group maintained its never-ending positivity and its ridic- ulous pace. At many different points over that day, I found it hard to continue, even though I knew we were so close to our destination. The relentlessly optimistic attitude of my friends, however, was contagious, and thus I always felt included and hopeful, which for me truly epitomises what the Duke of Edinburgh scheme is about – teamwork, positive reinforcement, and persistence. I will always
remember the moment when we saw the van at the bot- tom of the very last hill. Pure elation rushed through us, and the final descent concluded with a frantic group run towards our instructors, who greeted us with their con- gratulations. It had been quite a trek, but a sense of real accomplishment coursed through us all. Writing retrospectively, I can see that DofE has been a significant feature of my time at Dulwich, and it has equipped me with some valuable life skills. Helping those in need, whilst engaging in new and old ventures, and en- joying time well spent with friends certainly brings out the best in you, and for all those reasons I would thoroughly encourage anyone to sign up for DofE. It’s a commitment like few others, but one which I’m sure any person brave enough to enlist would enjoy. ◉
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THE ALLEYNIAN 712
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