Award Ceremony

I have been dying to write this article for weeks now but I have had to keep quiet about this very exciting news until now!

I had thought that my magical college journey had ended on May 5th when I finished my Advanced Higher German exam…but about 10 days after the exam I got a very unexpected email from the college with the perfect epilogue to this wonderful 2 year story….

…I had won an award for my studies in German!

I couldn’t believe my eyes! I fully interrupted the conversation that my mum and PA were having and then almost had a panic attack because of my sudden overexcitement! While I got my breath back, my mum read the email for herself. Sure enough, I had just won an Achievement Award and was invited to the Edinburgh College Prize Giving at the Granton campus on June 9th!

In all my excitement, my brain didn’t make the connection that Isobel maŷ have had something to do with this, so, because of this, when I had calmed down a bit, I emailed Isobel to tell her this awesome news. She said that it was well deserved and called me “the most German Germanist ever”, I was still ignorant to the fact that she already knew what I had just told her and I remained that way until after the ceremony when she blatantly told me!

The week before the ceremony, I was emailed by someone at the college who was asking to write a story about me for the college social media channels! I said yes on the condition that she also talked to Isobel as my success was the result of teamwork. She agreed to this and sent me a list of questions to answer. I got the job done within the evening and sent the document back to her.

Little did I know that insisting on her talking to Isobel would come back to bite me…in the nicest way possible!

When I received the draft on Thursday, I saw that Isobel had said some extremely lovely things about me . So lovely in fact, that I got tears in my eyes reading them! I did feel really loved in that moment, if ever so slightly annoyed because I was crying!

Friday evening had finally arrived ! Earlier that day Isobel had sent me a little message just saying that she was really excited about the evening, so I was already in the spirit of the night!

I arrived looking my usual glamorous with my mum and my auntie Alice in tow, I also met my friend Joe, who I had also invited to the event. It was very fancy. I was shown the portable wheelchair lift that would carry me onto the stage, it worked fine . Then the official photographer took a couple of photos of me and my family. The event co-ordinator then prompted my family to choose their seats then we went to the foyer which had plenty of drinks and snacks although I was way too nervous to eat or drink anything! After a while, Isobel found her way to me which temporarily settled some of the butterflies. She introduced me to her boss, who, she explained, I would be photographed with when I was presented with my certificate. After a few minutes talking, we went our separate ways and I gave Joe a little squeeze because the nerves came back with a vengeance!

We were then shown to our seats. Joe and I were sat to the left hand side of the stage which were actually the best seats in the house! The wait felt like years and I was so nervous that I had to borrow Joe’s fidget toy! Eventually, my name was called and in my haste to get where I had to go , I actually forgot to put down the fidget!

Fidget toy still in hand, I was wheeled to the portable wheelchair lift. The audience had applauded every award winner so far, but the applause always stopped when the person had been presented with the certificate. Mine however, I felt lasted forever. It started when my name was called, kept going when I was being cranked up in the lift, didn’t subside when I arrived on stage, was still going when I was presented with my award and didn’t stop until I started to get wheeled off the stage! Wow!

As I returned to Joe, overwhelmed, he sarcastically asked for his fidget toy back. I wanted to return it, but with all the nerves of being up on stage, my hand had locked around it! It took Joe a few minutes to realise what was going on and kept trying to bargain with me! Eventually, he noticed that I couldn’t actually move my hand and, ever so gently, guided it out of the tight hand, careful not to hurt me!

The award winners were piped out! I was not expecting it but I was asked to take part in the procession! When I got to the end I noticed Isobel in the very back row, with her camera out! I gave her my biggest cheesy grin, for the camera , but more so to say thank you for helping me to get there. I know I have a talent for the German language, but I believe that, I would never have discovered my full potential if I didn’t have such a nice, supportive tutor with whom I really clicked with!

When I started learning German back in Lockdown, I never imagined that I would get this far! Not only have I just won an award for my German studies, but in October, I am going to start my degrees in language studies with German and French at the Open University! I still can’t believe that this all started because of one singular person! Saying that’, before I met her, I was not really on any particular path ,so it raises the question of whether people come into your life to set you up on a journey.

eemmcg