Caden Lin (12) remembers walking through the Seechaitong street market in Thailand on his way to the International School of Bangkok located in the city Nonthaburi. He passed by familiar faces such as the coconut vendor Khun Um every morning and made sure to converse with them despite the language barrier. Over his three years as an expatriate in Thailand with his family, he formed connections and relationships with the people residing on the street as he learned their stories.

“Trying to understand who they were, becoming interested in their stories which are so radically different from mine, and over time, trying to overcome the language barrier, trying to teach them portions of English while also learning Thai from them was important for me,” Caden said.

Caden moved to Thailand for a couple of years in August of 2015 due to his dad’s job and found that his experience there highlighted the importance of connecting with people, even through something as simple as a greeting, who may not have played a significant role in his life otherwise.

“Form[ing] these intersections between our two different backgrounds, and finding meaning between our lives started in my first year there,” Caden said. “These connections and intimate personal relationships between people who you could easily not consider in your life, but you [chose] to, [makes you] find meaning and resonate with their lives, which is something I appreciated.”

Caden’s experience benefitted both him and people in Thailand as he learned the language by living there, but he also enjoyed teaching local students about various topics. For instance, he fondly remembers playing Mario Kart with his peers as they had never seen a video console from America before.

Before attending freshman year at Harker, Caden moved to California in July of 2018. He describes the transition from Bangkok to San Jose as jarring due to the vast difference in environment.

“There was a sense of reverse culture shock where you’re becoming acclimated to this environment that you used to know, but now you don’t,” Caden said. “The hardest part of moving back to Harker was that the environment in Thailand is so different from [Harker’s].”

When adjusting from the relaxing and collaborative atmosphere in Bangkok to Harker’s ambitious, academic world, Caden found that he struggled initially in the new environment.

“I was caught up in this idea that you have to achieve unwavering excellence that teachers, coaches, parents, but most of all yourself are demanding,” Caden said. “[I had] to come to terms with this idea that you’re never going to be successful or find fulfillment by living up to these arbitrary standards of perfection that you think you have to live up to.”

Over the years, Caden realized that perfection isn’t necessary to pursue a passion as long as there is genuine enjoyment associated with it, which he learned by observing his peers.

“Even when you’re chasing activities with passion and all the flair and creativity in the world that you want, you still might not achieve that sense of unwavering excellence that peers around you seem to have,” Caden said. “That was a soul-crushing reality for who I was three years ago, but now it’s an idea that I accept, cherish and appreciate.”

Caden’s experience in Thailand influenced his decisions even after returning to California as his time in the country opened his eyes to opportunities he wouldn’t have considered without stepping out of Harker or the U.S. One of these opportunities came to him in the form of the restaurant MOD Pizza, where he started working this past summer.

Working at MOD Pizza alongside coworkers in the restaurant’s second chance program, in which people with mental disabilities or history with imprisonment have the chance to work, Caden connected with people with various backgrounds.

“Understanding these stories that so often go unheard, these stories that are hidden behind things like a record of incarceration that employers only see at face value, is so important and illuminating,” Caden said. “Being able to relate to them or recognizing and accepting them has been something I remember fondly, even today.”

With MOD Pizza, Caden began venturing out of his comfort zone and eventually did the same with debate. He started with public forum in his freshman year per his parents’ request, but later found himself enjoying the activity and remained in the program.

“[Debate] lets you raise your voice, be heard and learn about how you think in a way that no activity within the classroom can teach you,” Caden said. “It’s allowed me to embrace who I am as well as embrace the voices of others.”

Fellow debate participant Carol Wininger (11) was among those Caden formed connections with in debate through which Carol discovered that Caden isn’t the shy, timid person he appeared to be initially.

“[Caden’s] a kind person that you can easily talk to and will always be there for you,” Carol said. “The more I talk to him, the more I realize that he thinks he’s an introverted and socially awkward person, but he’s not. He underestimates himself, which is what all of us can see except for him.”

Close friend Kailash Ranganathan (12), who met Caden freshman year, also finds him easy to talk to, something that became especially apparent while going on runs together during the pandemic.

“It’s really comfortable talking to [Caden], and that’s because he’s grown over the years,” Kailash said. “He’s the one guy who really cares about his friends, and he’ll go out of his way to help his friends. That’s become a lot more apparent especially over quarantine when people might be struggling with loneliness or other mental issues, but he’s always there for you.”

Similar to debate, his time in Thailand and his job, joining the varsity soccer team allowed him to listen to those around him and value their opinions, something he found especially important in collaborative environments.

Debate partner Vedant Kenkare (12) admires Caden’s intellect as well as the abilities he’s gathered through his experiences and activities. As they both move off to college, Vedant hopes they’ll keep in touch.

“He should focus on himself because he has all the tools he’ll ever need for success,” Vedant said. “My only advice would be to never feel like he should give up on something because he has the intellect, he has the skills and he has the heart.”

Whether it’s Harker or California, Caden has challenged himself to step beyond his comfort zone to learn various lessons about the world. Crossing these boundaries led Caden to more eye-opening experiences that have created lasting memories.

“The experience of building bridges between people you’d never otherwise interact with, and that these bridges are ultimately made out of nothing but hope for the future, regardless of your upbringings, has been meaningful for me,” Caden said. “Stepping beyond closed communities that you’ve existed in previously, and taking a step into the more unsettling, uncomfortable world means a lot to me.”

Overall, such experiences have brought to light the importance of discovery for Caden. He believes discovery is essential to have a positive impact on others.

“Going forward in college and beyond that, I hope to explore unexplored intersections between different communities, and pave unpaved roads towards an exciting future,” Caden said. “This involves both pursuing the passions that I’ve developed my whole life as well as discovering new ones and weaving them together with what I know to create the most meaningful, exciting future.”