Everything had been leading up to this moment. There are no words to describe how anxious I was. We were supposed to arrive at nine, so we had plenty of time to snap
pictures and chat a little bit with our new friends, but the suspense just kept on fueling my anxiety. For the first round of debates the four teams in our group would go one at a time, and thankfully me and Eon were second and were able to practice with team Kentucky. I don’t know about Eon, but personally I was freezing my butt off, seriously regretting having worn a pencil skirt! Each round was around an hour, which just barely gave us enough time to gather our notes and center ourselves. The debate actually went pretty smoothly with minimal hiccups. I expected us to lose from the very beginning, so I was even more shocked to learn that we had won our first round. The next round was not as easy, seeing as we had the highest scoring team in our pool as our competitors. This was also the elimination round where once you mess up, you’re out. The worst part was that we were paired with our previous teammates who knew all of our arguments. We tried our best, and in the end the other team totally killed it. In the end, Kentucky won, and our entire group was awarded the title of being the Champion Pool for having the highest points total. Having given debating my best shot, I know that I have new knowledge and confidence, and a new appreciation for debaters. I had so much fun and the entire trip was such a great opportunity. There are no words to describe how amazing this journey was. -Madison Kwan, Grade 10
Convent & Stuart Hall Travel 