this is shaping up to be a super duper uber long blog post! because i've been super duper uber busy that i have no time to blog for so long! so now i'm left with so many things to blog about: training camp, PSL training, PB farewell, orientation camp prep and * stuff * (all of a sudden i don't really feel like blogging anymore but i'll do it anyway)
Wednesday (Boxing Day)I don't get to enjoy boxing day at home or with relatives like everyone else ): i spent boxing day in the school LT giving countless briefings to the new prefects! arrived in school at 7am (early D:) for the first day of prefects' training camp, where we were there more to train than be trained. the day was pretty much quite boring until we decide on impulse to have a NEP vs EP soccer match during lunch, which brought about a 30+ vs 20+ mad scramble on the asroturf between those two goalposts. more stuff until the night where we played booking game! * i lost my voice almost *rushed camp proposal in the night and slept.
Thursday (PSL Training)skipped almost the whole day of RIPB training to go for PSL training. besdies the normal stuff we always do, i remember mr eng's speech in particular. he spoke about the Rafflesian ethos and spirit. Giving the examples of a rugby and judo final, he spoke about the great spirit Rafflesians once had, and now has faded away. I understand where he was coming from as i see this occurance with my own eyes too. The Rafflesian Spirit has just become an intangible mass of words floating and being tossed around in the air. It is spoken about sometimes, but rarely put into practice. Every time i feel so much for the Rafflesians in the sporting arena, in competitions where they are doing their best, i don't know how many others have the same sentiments as myself. As senior student leaders of 2008, it is our task to re-ignite this spirit. always easier said than done i acknowledge, but never impossible. This spirit is way too important to let it fade away. If we all start the search from the inside of us, we will see just how this has the ability to bloom, to flourish to prosper.
mr eng also talked about houses. about how houses should not just keep ideas to themselves and fight for the ever so competitive championship but rather, be willing to share ideas and practices. the result being each house able to function better, the school being able to function better and therefore a spirit being cultivated. there's no doubt it's always good to win, to put in a strong fight in everything we do, but how much sacrifice is worth this price? no doubt i want to win, to bring glory to moor house, to let the sec 4s leave the school on a high note with their heads up high. but at what price? i can say it honestly now, i'm probably the person who agrees the most with the idea of sharing practices, ideas. after all, what is house for anyway? is it just another platform for us to compete, beat opponents down and win? i think it's far more than that and far more than what words can describe. i'm willing to walk the tightrope between competition and cultivation. i'm willing to lay down pride and build lasting ties. i'm willing to share systems, if only the school would be a better place. i know this sounds idealistic, but if we never try, we would never know. maybe it's time for the 2008 batch of house captains to be pioneers. to do things people have never tried before, to gain result so unthought of, to lead each house not only to glory but in a way we know that everybody gains in the end. it's tough. i know it is. but it's necessary. moor08 will be a year none of us will ever forget!
it was the most encouraging speech i had heard the whole year. it really drove me forward in preparing for 2008. the rest of the day was spent explaining the SLO (or SLN in RGS) which will be pioneered in RI in 2008. had millions of discussions and all. after the long day ended, we joined back RIPB for some games and debrief. here marks the end of PB training.
Friday (farewell)honestly, i'm quite disappointed with the number of people who turned up for the farewell. after all, the sec4s are the very people who spearheaded the board for the year 2007, who gave us the experience, who mentored us along the way. and yet, so many didn't even turn up. but with the numbers we had, we had fun i can say. waterbombs were fun because max bought 1000+ waterbombs for so few people, which gave each of us ample ammo. i soon got tired of the bombs and started using the pail, which could hold much more water. initially, the fight was just among PB. then suddenly, the badminton people came and so they joined in too! i don't know why. so i gave my dear ex-HR head law jia hao a nice pail of water (: heh. that's when it happened. i was trying to chase down boontiong when matthew tjoa tried to turn on me and threw a bomb? (i can't rmb) at me. i continued chasing and boontiong or matthewtjoa (i don't know which one, i think boontiong) said: "__________"
i knew it was a joke so i just kept on with the fun. it's wasn't till later then i realised that it didn't seem right. even if it was a joke, or a random sentence, it wasn't funny. and i don't know, that got me confused ):anyway, soccer follwed after we cleaned up the field to leave no trace of us! and then dinner with the sec 4 RIPB members for the final time. one last time. they left. me, zongyi, jianxiong and yuda styed to talk. we left. the school was quiet.
i was back in thinking mood. alone.* * * * *
the wind is cold tonight. i place my face outside of the window pane and the gentle breeze caught it. cold winds make for a good setting, one which brings you back to things of the past, things so uncertain. i'm feeling that sense of uncertainty now. I'm very unsure. I'm very scared. I'm worried that one day, all will be lost. I'm .....there are no words to actually say now. i don't know what to. maybe all this is just wishful thinking? i've no control.help. would you?
