In the late 1960s, as an adolescent in Sussex, I was inspired by our local Youth Officer to go for the Duke of Edinburgh's Award bronze medal. I did various tasks - making a garden, playing the cello, and going on a 6-mile walk to the Roman villa at Bignor, writing an account of my visit. Then on to the silver award, including in 1969, at 16, planning and carrying out a 2-week youth hostelling trip (with a friend) around the south of England, on foot with some train and bus journeys. That was a transformative experience, my first solo trip; it worked brilliantly - looking back, I'm proud of my planning abilities in pre-internet days! - and I definitely grew in independence and experience, particularly through the encounters with different people at the youth hostels.
In 2019, 50 years on, I retraced that journey; by bike and train rather than on foot, and as most of the youth hostels were no longer in existence I mainly stayed in other places. But I relived my great adventure, and experienced it all again in my mind, and looked back with immense gratitude at what it had done for me. Thank you, Duke of Edinburgh's award.