Last Words

On Thursday night, I made my second trip to El Cerrito High School this year, for what may be the final time the Ivy League Connection would meet before our departure in late June.

But this was a special event, not necessarily because everyone was there or that we brought our parents -- although that alone is enough to make any event special.  No, this event was special because for the first time in a long time, we did not have to wear formal attire.  It was nice being able to wear my sweater and jeans instead of the usual collared shirt and tie.

Besides that, this was Orientation night -- the night where all of the students would have our questions answered and our expectations fed.  And in terms of that, this night was quite successful.

From Ms. Kronenberg's affirmation of how important this program was, to Mr. Ramsey's reminders of self-discipline and rule-following, it was good to remember how important this experience is.  And despite some delays and some confusion among the students, everything seemed to be okay.  The instructions the ILC leaders were giving us were clear, and now I will certainly look into borrowing an item from Don before I leave.

Our chaperone, Ms. Neal, brought us to our specified classroom and briefed us on our plans and our responsibilities.  After dealing with some paperwork, everything was set.  We were also given a few suggestions by previous chaperones on places to go and things to see.  Of course, being in the Hotel Operations Management class, I certainly hope I have enough time to do things like that.

At the end of the night, Mr. Ramsey remarked, "Well then, it's happy trails!"  I certainly hope this is the case.