2,350,000 Timbits: The Journey of The Journey

12 July 2016Charlie Crooks, Rogers ‘16; Photo by Paul Fletcher

The following was delivered on Closing Day by second generation Brentonian and Valedictorian for the Class of 2016, Charlie Crooks, Rogers, ‘16. It’s a beautiful day in Beautiful BC. I mean it says that on the license plate, and I’m just going to say that if this were America, whoever wrote that would have been sued by now. Now first off, I’d like to welcome the parents and thank them for coming here, hopefully to see me. I almost don’t believe the journey we went through. A journey of twelve years, or for Joseph Fargey, a journey of twelve concussions. But it’s not the length of the journey, the end of the journey, or the start of the journey that today is about. It’s the journey of the journey. I could say my journey began with Bryn Crawford. I could say my journey began in 2013, when I got to Brentwood, but it really started long before that. My journey has been about transformation. Three years ago, there was an entirely different person here. He couldn’t talk to girls, he wasn’t good at sports, and he was easily 20 pounds heavier. His name was Mohit Dhir. Mohit has transformed: he is the embodiment of transformation. That dapper young gentleman over there is just a completely different person, and if there were a Mohit Dhir Award for being Mohit Dhir, he would get it and I would present it to him. I can almost relate to Mohit. Not on the same scale, but I definitely can. You see, I’m not even from Canada. I come from the third smallest, but second proudest state in the United States, Connecticut. I was caught completely off guard. I always thought Canadians were less aggressive than Americans, but I found myself getting into this argument every single day. I mean, you bump into someone and it’s, “Oh, sorry.” “No, I’m sorry.” “No, I’m sorry.” “No, I’m sorry.” “Fine, you’re sorry. It was still my fault though.” I also thought it would be cold. But the only cold I’ve seen is that cold stare Tom gives himself in the mirror while he’s lifting. But I got used to the quirks of Canada. In fact, on my first Christmas break, I was at home and felt like getting some Tim Horton’s. Then I realized that’s not actually possible. I mean what is Tim’s? It only exists here. But with or without Tim’s, I will always remember Vancouver Island as that place that stole all of California’s rain. Now—a lot like Flohit—before I got here, I did not have a ton of friends. I still don’t really. I wasn’t great at sports. When I got here, I knew that I was going to play rugby, and get really good at it. And that’s what I did. For about two weeks. I’m not going to lie here, I was not motivated enough in Grade 10. But then I found a new calling. I may have started at the bottom of the Cross Country team, but I worked hard. Every day, I pushed myself harder. I showed up early every time. I bent my limits, aimed high. It took two years, but now, I don’t have to go to bed knowing I’m in the slow group. I can rest easy as a proud member of the medium slow group. Now as much as I could go on about my stories and my experience, I think we should all take a moment to acknowledge the sacrifices our parents have made. I should put this in perspective in a way Canadians will understand, so think about it this way. Your parents had a choice between getting 2,350,000 Timbits and sending you here, and they went against their primal instincts as Canadians to make that choice. And in all honesty, I think any of us can appreciate how hard that is. If you’re from one of the 35 other countries that come to this school and don’t know what a Timbit is, God help you. Being here has honestly changed my life. The memories I’ve made here are memories I will never forget. I pride myself on always going hard at things. Whether going hard at my studying or going hard at the Valentine’s Day dance, I can look back and say that, for better or worse, I went the extra miles *ahem* kilometers. Every teacher here deserves a standing ovation, but anyone who had to teach me deserves a special mention. Since I got here, I’ve gone through 15 different teachers, and they’ve all given me wildly different experiences. Mr. Cowie exposed me to the horrors and atrocities of the Pemmican War. Mr. Collis—greatest English teacher I ever had—jumpstarted my rap career. And Mr. Warner not only made me understand calculus, he made me appreciate calculus. In that sense he is the “defernition” of a great teacher. And it’s those wildly different experiences I’ve had that bring us here. The end of the line. Now, the paths have crossed. This is the last point in the journey that we’ve all shared. We’re about to split up, on our own journey. I’m going back to America to major in freedom. Joe Small is on his way to a promising career in babysitting. It’s time for me, everyone here, and most importantly, Ethan Bottomley, to pass the torch to the next graduating class. But no matter where everyone here is going, where everyone will be, there is nothing I’m more proud of than having been able to be on the same unbelievable experience train as you guys for the fastest three years of my life. And I know that I overuse this phrase, but I truly mean it when I say, “It was pretty solid.” Charlie Crooks, Rogers ‘16 For a video of the entire Closing Ceremonies please see https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O7o-S4DeJos Charlie’s speech begins at 2:23:38.

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