As Miss Teenage Canada , I had the incredible opportunity to represent our beautiful country of Canada on the international stage at Miss Teen Universe. What an unbelievable and unforgettable experience. Representing Canada was truly a great honor that I will cherish for a lifetime! 
On February 23rd, I was three luggages packed and in heels taller than me, (Security at 
the Toronto Pearson airport was really impressed by all the jewelry in our carry-ons ;)) and on my way spend an unforgettable week in the heat of the stunning COSTA RICA. The pageant was held from Feb 23rd to the 29th in Costa Rica’s booming capital of San Jose. I was immersed in an amazingly beautiful new place with new languages and cultures from around the world. It made me truly appreciate the beauty in the diverse world we all share, My curious mind was in awe learning about true wonders of our world.
One of my most memorable experiences that I will treasure of a lifetime was wearing Canada’s National Costume on an International stage. I embodied what Canada represents in a very glamorous costume, that was overflowing with our culture from head to toe, in Canada and around the world, our National Costume is our “name tag”. They offer the world watching a small glimpse into what their country’s values, symbols and what they stand for. The Maple Leaf has been used as a Canadian symbol since the 1700s, which has become an international symbol for unity, tolerance and peace which are core values in a Canadian society. The prompt colors: white and red are symbolic of our past heritage. White is a symbol of peace reflecting the neutrality and honesty of Canadians and the red represents hardiness, bravery and strength for the soldiers that lost their lives fighting for our freedom. The costume is a resemblance and tribute to a flag, and meant to highlight the values in which the flag stand for in Canadian society.
Something I will treasure for a lifetime is when we got the privilege to tour a stunning traditional church in the outskirts of San Jose. While in the church I noticed a little old 
lady sitting on the end of a bench praying, I sat on the bench next to her and when she saw me she lit up with excitement, she hugged me and said “I was the most beautiful girl in the world she has ever seen” and gave me her own personal cross for good luck! This was such an meaningful act of kindness and a memory I will cherish forever!!
The 25 young women that I met during the week very welcoming, friendly and truly beautiful-inside and out. Each girl had such a beautiful and unique quality that made them stand out. No wonder they were title holders. The world is so beautiful as well the women 
that walk in it. The language barrier definitely didn’t stop any of us from making close friendships, even though we didn’t speak the same language, well we admitted to at times, we all became best friends. For the most time we all could not remember anyone’s names, so we called each other by our countries names. My closest friend throughout the week were “South Africa ” (Taahirah) “Barbados” 
(Aaleah), “Australia” (Gabby), “Brazil” (Nicoly), “Bahamas” (Davette) and “Turks and Caicos” (Amber), we spent 10 days laughing, bonding and eating, sharing stories, and of course DANCING under the warm sun. A treasured memory that 
we all share was when we got to experience the safe night life that costa rica has to offer at the “O’Clock lounge”, we spent the night dancing and singing songs together (in both Spanish and English, well attempted Spanish). Another memory that we all share is when we go to to the “Blu Beach Club”, we got to 
share amazing food, swim in a beautiful pool and of course experience the breathtaking beaches that are enclosed in Costa Rica.
World wide title holders are so very so valuable to the world, because it empowers women to strive for excellence and gives them an authentic voice that can stretch worldwide, which lets them stand out for what they believe in. My personal favourite part of competing in a pageant is an interview, because it allows the titleholders to show the judges their personality and what they stand for. I am Happy to announce that after all my hard work, I placed in the top 16 ( 6th runner up), won “best face”, and placed top 6 for “best hair” and will be featured in commercials and in advertising for “Evolution Keratin / Evox ”. A huge Thank you them for providing myself with an amazing goodie bag full of there world winning products, My personal favorite product is their leave in conditioning spray!!
It is hard to believe that less than three weeks ago I was in Costa Rica competing for the title of Miss Teenage Universe, especially when temperatures go from 30 degrees celsius to flying back into a terrible snow storm. I am so thankful for this opportunity, and I am proud to leave knowing that I embodied and exemplified everything that a titleholder should. 
Until next time,
Miss Teenage Canada 2015- Sarah Wojcik