When I first got off my flight to Newark for ILTC, I was over-the-moon excited, but also terrified. But I had no reason to be. I found friends quickly, learned about leadership, and got to discover new parts of who I am. During the Anytown field trip, three of my friends and I found out there was a sushi restaurant in the mall we were going to. And obviously, being 4 teenage girls who needed outside-world food, we picked the sushi place. We sat down, ordered, and did what you do at literally every restaurant you go to. We got our food, and one of my friends was talking about how good her food was, but she really liked the rice. Then, in the middle of our peaceful meal, the quote our group chat is named after, arguably the funniest conversation we had at Perlman, finally happened. 

“Have you guys ever put soy sauce on rice?”

Obviously, we all had. It’s not even that funny of a line; it's just become one of those things. Maybe we were all just so tired from the day. Maybe we just needed a good laugh. Genuinely, who knows why that question was so funny. But it has become something more than we thought it would be. We now have a teddy bear named Soy Sauce that we made at Build-A-Bear who is sitting on my bed. Our group chat is called “SOY SAUCE ON RICE,” followed by about a million different emojis. By the end of Perlman, soy sauce was practically a personality trait. 

I now think of soy sauce as something more significant. It’s more than just soy sauce. It’s like how when someone asks you what BBYO is, it's hard to say it's just a youth group. It’s a lot more than just a youth group. Like how Perlman is more than just a camp; it shapes you in ways you wouldn’t imagine. It gives you time to step back, reflect on your leadership, learn what you need, and bring it back to your home community. At Perlman, like everyone else, I learned about leadership, but on top of that, I realized that BBGs are more than just friends.

Submitted with undying love for ILTC ‘26, Dans, separates, the 50 states song, I forever remain a proud member of Soy Sauce on Rice.