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HELLO WE'RE INTO JUNE ALREADY!
It's been a really nice Sunday after the CCAL camp, and dozens of meetings every single day into the weekend after the camp itself! This wonderful Sunday today was spent resting and exploring outside and walking around (which I really have done in a very very long time). Plus I caught Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian today and I must say that it was a great movie, considering I haven't watched a movie since 3-4 months ago! Ah I've been living under a rock.
The point about living under a rock is very true; I think I haven't been noticing things happening around me outside RJC pretty much. I still remember I used to observe how Singapore car plate numbers progress, from the 'B' ranges (haha my Dad's car is like SBK because he kept the car plate number all the way to now, across all the changed cars!) to the 'C' ranges to 'D' ranges and so on. The last time I noticed, the new cars around were in the F-G ranges and recently I was shocked that they had entered the 'J' ranges from the last time I observed, and that really sent a strong message to myself that I've been missing out on the world.
I don't know how car plate numbers can be a good measure of how detached I'm from the world, but yes it's a relevant point. I think I'm losing myself in all the blindness of business and even though it brings me great focus to school work and council work, losing this curiosity and losing this sense of the world takes a piece of me away, I would like to think.
So I really want to tell myself - open up, breathe more of the fresh air; That was what the Bintan night skies told me, when I looked up during the many nights of CCAL camp and saw millions of stars staring back at me, a sight which no person from Singapore can remain un-awed at.
Which brings me onto the point about the CCAL camp - Apart from it being a really really wonderful blast, I truly appreciated the camp for bringing back memories and most importantly, the insights I used to have (and I hope I still had) about leadership. It's a horribly cliched term whom people would love to scorn and be cynical about, and there are so many countless sayings and theories about leadership to the point that it has become faded and not discussed about. But it's a key part of life to most people I believe, no matter what they do or where they're at.
I truly am grateful for all the symbolism cleverly crafted into each and every one of the camp activities, like how the Wakatobi land expedition taught me that decisiveness and confidence is a key part of being a person, not just a leader alone. And how the mangrove reforestation, given the seemingly meaningful facade of service to the community, actually taught us how planting our values and staying strong to them would generate a future generation that has a good culture and would allow our CCAs or organizations to go on forevermore. I was really surprised at how much I could learn, and then I realized that I, had started to stop learning.
That came as a shock because I never really imagined that I would actually fall into the trap of the common adult - unwilling to learn and keeping a bleak outlook of life. But actually at that point, I realized that I was slowly progressing towards that stage. And yes, now that I'm aware of that, I will continue to open up and continue exploring.
I will continue being a child - to continue growing, exploring, learning, being optimistic, never losing hope.
I will continue growing up - to become more focussed, keeping a calm mind and always having the tenacity and energy to make things come to fruition.
I will continue keeping this balance - to be the best person I can ever be.
And of course, how can I ever forget that being a person is mainly about being there for other people? That's indeed what makes us human; that distinguishes us from animals and plants, apart from the human being able to rationalize.
Well yes, many many insights gained from the CCAL camp, as a result from all that trekking, jungle-bashing, stretcher-carrying, sea-wading, mangrove-wading, rafting, tent-pitching, cooking on the wet mud, and all the team work. I love group B1! They've been the most awesome group by far. We are all very very different people but this diversity has allowed us to win the Adventure Quest night walk, and win the rafting session. OUR RAFTING ROCKS I TELL YOU! We rafted to the checkpoint in the sea and back to the shore with our shirts all dry :D
And with the camp ending on Germaine's birthday, we decided to celebrate along with her at Swensen's after the camp - and also with a nice big earthquake to end it off :D
The next few days after the CCAL camp were spent meeting, meeting and meeting, to round up all the various council stuffs before blockout ensues and all of us have to be reduced to studying for our CTs which start immediately after the June holidays end. And YESTERDAY, after nat day's workplan meeting which went quite well, I met Shanzhi up and OMG HE GAVE ME THIS - A PRESENT FROM THE STATES!
No no no, he didn't just give me any nice funky adidas dance cap from the States. CHECK THIS OUT OMGGG THANKYOUUU ROBOCOP BOSS HEADBOY!
Hahah let's wait for some time till my hair grows so that when I wear it around, I won't look like I'm trying to cover up my lack of hair now :D The new hair's great and really convenient hahaha!
I stayed in a classroom all day working on my laptop and talking to shanzhi until the security guard chased us out because I overstayed on the booking time for the classroom. So we went to the RIPB room :D And I had a lot of fun there exploring the cupboards and drawers for food and stumbled on a packet of wasabi green peas which I didn't notice that they were wasabi-flavoured so I wasted $1.85 on them and I left them in the room. And I sprayed shanzhi with the Impulse deodorant left lying around in the room and he smelled funny so I left them in the room too. And I left a mark on the whiteboard so here it is!
Plus later that day I managed to get a new pair of sneakers - a pair of Nike Air Prestige's, to replace the really nice but broken Nike Air Force Ones which I used extensively for dance. And these Air Prestiges are hot!
Plus dad and I really needed a nice bag to store our files/papers and a laptop so we got a laptop bag which we could share, a nice Dakine Terminal and yes it's going to be a nice school bag too! Finally, a backpack again after 2 years. I've been using sling bags since ages ago and finally I think I'm getting bored of them.
I realize I miss a lot of things right now:
- I miss drawing every day.
- I miss writing poetry and letting my thoughts flow.
- I miss designing things with the privilege of free time.
- I miss running and sprints. I miss the track a real lot.
- I miss dance and being able to go the studio everyday during the hols.
- I miss hanging out with all my friends, during the december hols and during post-orientation.
- I miss friends whom I've been talking to less.
- I miss the RI days.
- I miss being a small RI boy learning the ropes of life.
But there's really no point in missing things now, for whatever I've gone through has been a good memory and they have paved the way to allow me to be where I am now; the best thing I can do for myself is not to sit in this clear silence and appreciate the good times back then but really step forward and work hard, and enjoy life to the fullest. Then when I grow old and wrinkly and useless, I'd have a whole life of memories to pore over and really feel the joy and youth.
I shan't waste these years, whatever energy I have for now, is for Raffles.
I will continue growing, and being happy, being there for people as much as I can.
Heh okay blockout's starting real soon, in a couple of days so I have to sit down calmly and build a great deal of focus.
Everything I do now, is for a mighty being. Not even daniel chew who has ten awards for RI Founder's Day (haha I thought I might want to put this here, because most people only have one or two awards in their own powerpoint slide but he has a GRAND TOTAL OF NINE ZOMG)
But yes, a mighty being. Three mighty letters that form something bigger than many legends put together:
I'm for Raffles, We're for Raffles!
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