Reflections - Rijupriya
Reflections is our new online profile series which speaks to Senior students at Hume Anglican Grammar, asking them to both look back on their time here at our school, but also speak about what lies ahead in the future.
In our inaugural edition, we are speaking with Rijupriya Poudel, currently in Year 11 (Mt Ridley campus).
Tell us about your first day at Hume Anglican Grammar?
6 February 2017 was my first day at Hume Anglican Grammar. I put on my uniform and Blazer reminding myself first impressions last.
I was apprehensive because it was my first day – in fact I was completely terrified. This wasn't just a new school it was a completely new environment, moving states going north to south my life had literally done a 180. Everything felt so different from the way people walked, talked, and simply existed. In Darwin, everyone knew each other and it was warm and cosy but in Melbourne, I felt lost in the crowd.
I was warmly greeted by Mrs Lazarus, who assigned me the table in the back left corner with four others. I was the girl known as the class chatterbox and was as silent as a mouse. However, as the period progressed, I started to open up, first to my table then my class and by the end of the day to the cohort. It only took a day, a day of being a student at Hume Anglican Grammar and I already felt like I belonged.
The welcoming environment overpowered my fear allowing me to flourish. Seven hours later, the girl who feared change was encouraged to embrace it. “Mum I love my new school…” I exclaimed excitedly, eager for tomorrow and my journey ahead.
What is your favourite subject and why?
Literature reflects and embodies the evolution of human existence across all time periods. Since people still think and feel the same as they did hundreds of years ago, the literary perspectives in canonical works of literature mirror the perspectives relevant in today's society.
Furthermore, the discussions within this subject allow my creative autonomy to flourish. By combining a variety of viewpoints, we can interpret texts according to our own intellect and support them with a range of methods and that is why literature is my favourite subject.
What is your fondest memory so far at Hume Anglican Grammar?
Year 6 Camp at Canberra and the rush I felt travelling interstate without my parents. Despite only being 11 years old, I truly felt like an adult. This camp was not only full of fun memories, but also it was the trip that fuelled my passion for Politics and Law! While everyone fell asleep in the High Court I eagerly listened, asking and answering all questions. When I was asked by the Judge to answer a question without saying the word ‘like’ I fumbled, from that point onward I made it my mission to find all the synonyms for ‘like’ and sophisticate my rhetoric. Now my teachers often oppose my desire to overcomplicate sentences!
From the High Court to the Parliament Chambers my interest in Politics and Law progressed. Prime Minister, Politician, or Lawyer, I’ve set my goal, the goal that remains written on my whiteboard.
How has your time at Hume Anglican Grammar influenced your future pathway decisions?
As mentioned, the Year 6 Camp itself was a pivotal point that influenced my future pathway decisions. In addition to that moment, the unconditional support and guidance I receive from my teachers, as well as the enthusiastic support from the school community, not only helped me make a decision about my future career path, but also helped me become the self-assured leader I am today.
What would you like to do or study once you graduate from Hume Anglican Grammar?
Upon graduating, I intend to study a double degree that combines a bachelor’s degree in Law with honours in Politics, Economics, and Philosophy in order to pursue a career in law or politics.
Fast Four:
If Your Friends Could Describe You in One Word, What Would it Be?
Resilient
If you could have dinner with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?
Meryl Streep
Favourite travel spot or one thing you couldn’t live without?
My favourite travel destination is my Native land, Nepal
What is one thing most people don’t know about you?
I am an absolute cricket fanatic.
