Year 12 BSSC / NETschool student, Cyrus Dell, really likes this quote from Winston Churchill: ‘Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts’.
“If could go back in time and have a conversation with my younger self, my advice would be to trust myself more.
“I’d tell myself, ‘You’re better than people expect you to be, so don’t let them put you down’. I’d also say, ‘just wait, really good friends are coming’.”
Cyrus also highlights how vital it is to be grateful for what you have. His incredibly supportive and encouraging family—a family he is very grateful to have—are hugely important in his life.
Being part of the NETschool community has also been a real positive over the last couple of years.
After doubting he’d ever finish secondary school, Cyrus quickly discovered how effectively the NETschool staff and program could guide and support him as he re-engaged with his education.
“Re-engaging wasn’t easy, but I so appreciated finding an environment where I wasn’t judged, where I felt connected, and where I was encouraged to be my best self. Alongside this I discovered the learning style that worked best for me.”
Studying Drama was also pivotal.
“Drama allows me to be expressive, and explore all kinds of characters and situations you might not otherwise think about in most settings in your life.”
Cyrus recommends the college for lots of reasons but describes the subject choice as “mind-boggling” and his teachers as “experts in their area and so enthusiastic”.
“I’d describe BSSC as an all-encompassing and generous place,” he says. “There’s nothing I want to change about this college. I think the friends I’ve made here are people I will probably keep a connection with after I finish school.”
He has elected to study VCE over 3 years and, as well as Drama, is enjoying Ancient History and Legal Studies this year.
Since coming to BSSC’s NETschool, Cyrus has found himself surrounded by people who welcome—and encourage—him to express his individuality.
They are a crowd of people he can rely on, and he’s noticed he’s become a lot less self-contained and more willing to put himself ‘out there’.
“Because I’m a lot more comfortable, I’ve been able to embrace opportunities like the BSSC trip to China earlier this year.”
Cyrus applied for this trip with a sense that, given the number of students at BSSC, he couldn’t be too confident of securing a place. Therefore, he was particularly delighted to find out he was ‘in’.
Asked to name the highlights, Cyrus says there were so many but three stood out.
“Seeing the Great Wall is one, cycling the 13.7km of the Old City Wall of Xian (pronounced ‘shee-ahn’) was another, and the general experience of being immersed in a cultural experience where the history was so fascinating and so different to anything else I’d studied. We met so many friendly people.”
Having studied history definitely helped him appreciate the experience more deeply.
When Cyrus sits down to do his homework or study, he always has music playing in the background—anything from the 1940s through to the 1990s.
“I know it’s pretty unusual, but the playlist on my phone includes the Beatles, and one of my favourites, Brian Wilson, and/or the Beach Boys. Some of my other favourite artists are Nick Drake, Elvis and The Who.”
When things get stressful, some time in a quiet dark room can be all Cyrus needs to decompress.
“Although I’m not a Buddhist, I’ve also found meditation is great for relieving stress.”
When Cyrus is not at school or studying, he is heavily involved in umpiring with the Bendigo Umpires Association, and has recently moved from being solely a boundary umpire to gaining experience on the field.
“Umpiring has been a great way to keep fit and have fun and I get paid for it too. I love AFL and follow Port Adelaide.”
Exercise is a well-known antidote for stress, so Cyrus’ umpiring role serves him well in many ways.
He has also long been interested in politics and believes voters need to really carefully consider the policies that parties and individual politicians put up.
He hopes his future will revolve around politics. Given that most politicians have numerous advisors, and some have a large staff, he would love to have a well-paid role in this domain.
And, for all we know, we may one day see Cyrus’ name on the voting options of would-be politicians.
“Personally, I really admired Malcolm Turnbull and many of his policies. He wanted to be a liberal conservative and bring a new phase to the Liberal Party involving being more responsive to changes in society. For example, same-sex marriage legislation.”
Thinking about global concerns, Cyrus believes Australia is still far too much under the thumb of some other countries.
“I think we need to focus on being an individual country that doesn’t bend or fold itself to meet other countries’ expectations of us.
“While I do believe in freedom of expression, I don’t think everyone deserves freedom of speech if they are going to use it to tear other people down unfairly.”
