XAVERIAN'S CORNER

Soaring at Stanford
Rafael Mirafuente (H1H), Stallion Features Writer

Posted Friday, 06-Oct-2006 8:27 AM

      Certainly, if given the chance, any student would gladly postpone his quarterly exams. Surely every Xaverian would rather spend two weeks relaxing while his peers study and stress themselves out.

      What if there were catches?

      For those two weeks, instead of simply relaxing, one is taught all about leadership and responsibility in an unfamiliar place, where fitting in seems close to impossible. Then after you get back, you are given barely enough time to catch up with missed lessons, tests, and exams. Now, what say you?

      People to People is a company that promotes leadership through communication and community. Its message? Ordinary people can make a difference . In line with this, the company holds ambassadorial programs in highly prestigious universities in the United States and abroad. These programs or summits, with delegates from around the globe, focus on leadership in the fields of medicine, law, theatre, and pure leadership.

      Last August, Ryan Tan of 4C, accepted one such invitation from People to People, to immerse himself in a melting pot of cultures and learning at Stanford University. Incidentally, he was the only one to attend from the Philippines.

      There, Ryan learned all about leadership and lived it out in forms not commonly identified with “being a leader”.

      “You can be a leader by simply listening to a friend,” he learned. Also, he said that the summit had enlightened him, making him more optimistic and proactive.

      In addition, he attended talks by stand-up comedians and Stanford admissions officers, activities such as the Global Youth Panel, where international students would act as their country’s representatives, and excursions, which in Ryan’s case were trips to Santa Cruz and San Francisco.

      In totality, Ryan realized that attaining goals is just a matter of determination, courage, faith, and openness to leaving one’s comfort zone.

      “You can't make footprints in the sands of time by sitting on your butt,” Ryan realized. “Who wants to leave butt prints in the sands of time?”

      However, when asked about his most memorable experience, he explained that the people made all the difference.

      “The people I met were just amazing. I could really feel the diversity the world [is] blessed with.”

      Everyone who had attended the summit ended up making sure that he or she would reach his or her goals through becoming a leader, while at the same time promoting values and upholding principles.

      There is no doubt that the youth in this summit will be our future world leaders and Ryan himself is pushing himself to be one- maybe not a traditional world leader like a president, but a leader who everyone can look up to.

      With all the different cultures and experiences he was exposed to before, during, and after the summit, he says, "If I were to take every single piece of my experience and place them all together, the result would not fall short of a beautiful mosaic."

      The mosaic picture represents the main idea People to People teaches:  We can all make a difference. “Everything is in your hands; it’s just really up to you. It’s cliché, but it’s true,” Ryan said in conclusion.

Go back to the top ^