I am Riani from St. Aloysius Gonzaga School in South Jakarta, Indonesia. Last semester, our students, Ruth Nayla Ayu Veda and Made Raesa Saguna, were given the opportunity to participate in The Indonesian Student Research Olympiad. This was done to allow the students to have the experience of doing research. This experience enriches our students, this is why we are delighted to share this article, written by one of our students, Ruth Nayla Ayu Veda, about the experience, with educators and students in our global community.

A Very Long Trip to Best Experience
Written by Ruth Nayla Ayu Veda

The Indonesian Student Research Olympiad was the first national competition that I participated in, also being my longest journey as well. I never once thought in my mind that I would take part in a national competition and even become a winner in it. Starting from just looking for experience, it became one of the best things this year.

It all started in March when my teacher, Mr. Abdurrahman Safi’i, trusted me and several other friends to join. I’ve never participated in a big competition before, especially a research competition. This was a new thing for me. I was paired with Made Raesa Saguna, also known as Raesa, whom I only met that time in the Teachers’ Room. I was hesitant to accept this offer at first, but I believe that God was giving me a chance to use the potential that I have to work on a new thing. Next, we started writing the research proposal every week with the other 3 teams. Raesa and I did a research titled, “Analysis of Sustainable Fashion Styles through Thrifting in the Identity and Behavior of Teenagers in South Jakarta.”

In the process, I’m so grateful because I can share ideas with my teacher and amazing friends, Mr. Safi’i, Joanne, Abel, Garin, Raesa, Ceza, dan Erlington. Very happy to have Raesa as my partner because I can rely on him and he helps me a lot. Praise the Lord, the result of proposal selection in May showed that the four teams sent by Gonzaga passed and it means that we can continue our research.

When we were working on the research, I realized that researching isn’t as easy as collecting data. I often faced boredom and exhaustion in the process. It took patience and consistency to continue the research until it’s done. Our journey to Blok M on eleventh of August to do observation was the most challenging journey because it was hard to get a seller willing to be interviewed until we finally got one. We went to Blok M because our research topic is about Thrifting and Blok M is popular as one of the most favorite thrifting places. We want to see the real site and ask the owner about their view of thrifting. I also learned to think critically to get the answers of the problems I wanted to solve from the respondent.

Raesa, other teams, and I work on the research together even though the problems that we discussed are different. On the twentieth of October, Mr. Safi’i contacted me and I couldn’t believe what I saw at that time. Raesa and I passed as a finalist for the olympics. I’m truly grateful for the opportunity that God has given to me to develop my skills and get such further experience.

What an honorable achievement to be a finalist, one of the one hundred teams selected in Indonesia in this olympic. Our position as finalists, who also represented the province of DKI Jakarta, also led us to join Pre-Olympic week training at M. H. Thamrin State Prominent High School. There, I found many friends and got an experience to prepare for the Olympics professionally. Olympic week took place in the next 2 weeks. To be honest, this period was one of my lowest phases. I felt frustrated dividing my focus with ongoing school activities. One week before the Olympic week, I have to be responsible as the registration coordinator committee at the 2023 Gonzaga Festival and as a performer at the closing of the event. Everything was my responsibility and my right to embrace my talents. However, on my hardest day, I realized I was not alone. God was present through my closest friends, committee friends, Mr. Safi’i, and Raesa who gave me endless strength to finish what I had started. I took this hard phase as an adulting process.

Even though I was shrouded in doubt and fear, I wanted to make this Olympic week my best teacher. Olympic week finally took place from November 5 to November 11, 2023. Through presenting the Expo on the first day, I learned to see a problem from various sides. The people who came to my booth gave me their opinion as a new insight into my research topic. I also learned to be confident in explaining my research topic. The most stressful activity soon arrived, that was the presentation. Praise the Lord, the presentation went smoothly. Doing the presentation in front of highly educated and critical judges was trembling. One thing I am most grateful for is that I survived. After two days of assessment activities, the activities became more relaxed and enjoyable. There, I made many friends from various regions starting from fellow DKI Jakarta, Jogja, Purwokerto, Sidoarjo, Papua, Palu, even friends from Indonesian school in Jeddah. I was very happy to share stories and experiences with them. They were very fun and friendly. Through this bonding experience, I realized that the world is wide. There are still many things I can explore such as my friends who have experienced participating in various competitions everywhere. They were very experienced ones participating in national competitions.I am even more grateful that I could learn from their knowledge. There, I really felt the atmosphere of real national diversity. Trying to be open and respectful between ethnic groups is the key, so we built a very pleasant sense of family.

God’s blessing could never have been expected. Raesa and I won the special award for ‘Most Unique Expo’. It was never in our imagination to win an award. Raesa and I showed our best at the Expo and we tried to use our creativity to show uniqueness. God is really good. He has His plans for us. I hope our research has a good impact for teenagers in South Jakarta, especially on facing the trend of thrifting for their behavior and identity formation.

Fear can haunt you, but don’t waste your talents to gain experience. I feel lucky that with God’s grace and the support from the people around me, I can create the best experience. I want to continue pushing my limits and continuing to learn wherever I go. I always believe that this all comes from God’s plan that leads me to do my best for God’s glory and will always make me return to God. I’m ready to face the next challenge!

Ad Maiorem Dei Gloriam