Recently, there was a sudden happen of events which happened in the canoeing CCA. All the secondary threes in a certain craft, the kayak craft, quitted the CCA upon our teacher-in-charge Mr Yong’s repeated persuasion. Personally I feel that these secondary threes are very irresponsible for quitting and giving into the temptation of missing all the tough and grueling training sessions. These secondary threes were set to be our seniors next year to try to lead the team on to try and win the National Schools Championships but many of them quit. Though, they did not have exceptional leadership qualities, they could still have stayed in the CCA to be a target for us juniors to set to reach so that we can beat certain timing. I feel that as next year, we will be competing in the B Division category, having competitors older will help a lot due to the increase of experience and the strength and stamina they have in them. This year, they did very well against the other secondary fours from other schools, but they decided to quit at this very important path the canoeing team is taking. As it is, we do not have enough quality secondary one paddlers in our team to challenge for the C Division championships. One of the secondary ones has an asthma problem, two of them are severely overweight, and four of them are having severe attitude problem. The secondary threes leaving of the team at this period comes as a very big blow to us sec twos as we are left to lead. However, putting myself into Mr Yong’s shoes, his decisions are very well thought and well made. Thinking back, the secondary threes who left are very rebellious and often stand up to whatever Mr Yong says and even staged a boycott of a training camp during the June holidays. If Mr Yong had not persuaded them to leave, they would have probably influenced us and the secondary ones to be like them. A team with attitude problem and having second thoughts of winning will never go very far. Considering their poor leadership qualities such as not carrying out what they are asked to, they cannot lead others though they can win medals on their own. However this selfish mentality will pull the others in the team who unselfishly sacrifice for the team. These seniors won medals in this year’s competitions because they played mind games with their competitors such as performing sub-standardly purposely to let their opponents get the wrong impression of them and get complacent. Mr Yong also made several wrong decisions by putting them into some events based on their timing. Mr Yong felt that the stronger should compete in the events which have strongest competition but these seniors who are very talented let the hardworking and deserving team mates compete in the most difficult competitions while they go ahead to claim their medals in the easier competitions. Though the chances we may lose next year’s competitions, we have a very high chance of winning 2013’s National Schools Championships as the bad hats in the team are already eliminated. Mr Yong has obviously gambled his hopes on us sec twos to lead the team and influence them.
Showing posts with label LA-Ace. Show all posts
Showing posts with label LA-Ace. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Reflection on sex ed
Mr Charles Low, director of the ProEd consortium recently gave us a talk on sexuality education on going steady at our age. Being at 14 years, there are quite a number of people getting into the Boyfriend Girlfriend Relationship (BGR), whether in neighbourhood schools or elite schools. Mr Low’s advice to us was that we are still too young and obviously too busy to have a girlfriend. In my opinion, going steady at an age of 14 is a bit too young. I think that what causes people to have the temptation to get a girlfriend or boyfriend is largely due to influence instead of the desire to find a partner in life. Where does this influence come from? The television and friends. In my class, many of us watch the television series Glee. In this show, it depicts the high school life of students in the United States. In high school, the students were having steads are most of them have intimate relationships. These probably cause people to have the desire to find a girlfriend in our school as we are also around the same age as the characters in the show. However, if we really get a partner what good would it do to us? I feel that what really gets to us if we fall into a relationship at our age is trouble after the short term fun and thrill. The initial stages of a relationship is usually fun when you get to send flirtatious messages to the girl, see the girl and get to stuff that you see adults do on TV. What would happen when the relationship gets into the later stages are usually not as interesting and fun as it seems in the initial stage. When one’s studies get affected because of spending too much time and getting overly distracted by your stead, it can be quickly solved by studying and going for more tuition lessons. However, explaining this compromise to your girlfriend may be quite difficult. This is not the worse of the problems that would be brought to you when you get into a relationship if you do not know how to take the relationship into control. If the ‘fun’ relationship really gets the girl or you to fall deeply in love with the latter, but you or your stead does not really feel the same way to you, it would be devastating, especially if the relationship comes to an end. Guys and girls at our age have had mental breakdowns because of such reasons. When something like that happens, our future may seem bleak. But what is the worst thing that could happen to a ‘couple’ at our young age is when the girl gets pregnant. Not many boys at our age are courageous enough to buy contraception for an intercourse which is about to happen or they could not tell that it would be coming. The girl would have to go through a very emotional period when parents of both sides come together to make decisions that would probably affect the rest of her life. The girl would have to go through a period of emotional and physical pain. The guy would probably get a black mark in his record and his future is most likely ruined. Also, even if the relationship is maintained all the way to junior college and the two of them are having a healthy relationship, there is still National Service which awaits the boy which separates the two for quite a period of time while his girlfriend goes on to study and she would get to meet other guys. Will the relationship still be maintained? Will he be able to take the blow when his girlfriend sends him an sms he dreads and he would only receive in his worst nightmare? My stand is that, we could just be good friends with students of the opposite sex and do not go overboard.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Holiday to Bangkok
This June holiday was not too fulfilling as I left all homework and assignments until the last week. However, I got a chance to visit a country, which is going for its elections soon, Thailand. I visited Bangkok this time. The holiday to Bangkok this time was a totally different experience from the previous time, as promised by my parents. My parents had to exhaust much of their persuasion skills this time to talk me into joining them in this trip to the capital of Thailand. I had not wanted to go on a holiday at first because of the unreasonably high CCA demands I had to fulfill. In my previous post I had talked about my teacher-in-charge of my CCA being unreasonable and upset with our performance during the National Schools Canoeing championships. This time he signed us up for another competition to test our commitment to the school and in the process of doing so, he stepped up the training requirements. Going for holiday meant that I would be missing many training sessions and my performance in the CCA will drop tremendously after missing many trainings and I will usually have to take some time to be back in form and the process of training hard again is not very pleasant. Another reason I did not want to go on this holiday to Bangkok was because of the lousy and painful experience I had when I was much younger, maybe when I was in Primary 2. That time, when we visited Bangkok, it was a family outing with my aunty and her family. My aunty and my mother were two very avid shoppers. After we checked into our hotels, bathed, settled down, the nightmare begun. It was a nightmare for me, but not for my mother or her sister. We went to one of the biggest and most popular malls in Bangkok and started shopping. My mother and her sister walked into almost every lady shop that sold ladies accessories or shops selling stuff that were much cheaper if they were to buy in Bangkok than in Singapore. I was still okay as I accompanied the ladies for the first hour of the shopping as I had entertainment from my father and cousins and my aunty’s humorous husband. For the second hour, it was getting boring as we waited outside the shops, standing, yawning then walking to use the escalator or the lift, just to reach the next level and continue shopping. My legs were starting to feel tired as the mall was very different from the malls here. It was as if each level of the mall was twice the size of Bugis Village. What made it worst was the prize of the goods sold were much cheaper than those sold in Singapore. I suspected that it was this point which gave my mother and her sister the determination to shop continuously for hours. The third hour spent in the mall was torturous as my legs were aching and I already felt very tired and bored. I was also quite frustrated with my mother as she will have to bargain with the shop owner no matter how cheap the goods. Sometimes I felt like shouting at my mum and my aunty when they spent so much time in the shop, and then walked out empty handed because the price was not right or they were unhappy with the shop owner’s attitude. I could only vent my anger by throwing my little fist at my father who would tickle me in response. I was in pain. The positive part of that holiday was that I slept almost immediately when I lay in bed at night. We did not return to Bangkok for the past 8 years, but the experience has always been etched in my mind. This was one reason why I always enjoyed going to countries which their currency will be stronger and their things more expensive. Minimum shopping was done when my family visited the UK, USA and Australia. However, this time round when I went to Bangkok, many things changed over this 8 years. The airport, the roads, the hygiene, but unfortunately, the jams were still as frequent, and the same mall was still intact in spite of all the unrests which happened in the city over the 8 years. This time, there was still shopping, and the experience was not much better, but I also got what I wanted and needed. I was allowed certain toys which would definitely be denied when I asked for it in Singapore. After all, visiting a country which has cheaper goods also have its advantages. Another entertainment I had when my mother was shopping, was identifying the Singaporeans in Bangkok. This was not too difficult, you don’t really need look at their faces and appearances, you just have to open your ears and listen to the way they speak.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Best friends
It was not too long ago my family and I met up with one of my father’s best friends. We met at a restaurant for buffet lunch. After settling down, being a typical Singaporean, I rushed for the food, I was joined by my mother and my sister, then the other family a while later. We got our food and went back. When we reached the table, my father and his best friend had two cups of coffee in front of them and were talking nineteen to the dozen. The spouses of the two men shook their heads and walked off to help their husbands take some food. My father and his best friend, John, were talking nineteen to the dozen, even as they ate. Halfway through their chat, they may suddenly laugh out loud, attracting attention from the other diners. I paid little attention to the both men at first and helped myself to generous servings of the nice food at the buffet. It was after I had my fill and sat down to rest when I realized something about my father was amiss. Normally at buffets, he have a funny strategy – eating for 15 minutes, then he would walk around and look at the buffet spread for another 5 minutes and help himself to the food again. He would take frequent breaks and can always be seen walking around, so as to make the money he paid “worth it”. However, at this buffet, he only got up once or twice to food, and each time he would return with his plate full, instead of eating slowly. As I looked at my father and Uncle John, the two of them were talking more than they were eating. From what my father said before going to the restaurant, Uncle John was his buddy during the army days. Looking at two best friends still contacting each other after so many years, I thought about myself and the best friends I had and have. Based on what I can remember, I made best friends with two guys during Primary 4 and we decided that we will keep in touch even after going our separate ways after graduation from the school and even if we were placed in different classes in the subsequent years. I only contacted the two guys in primary 5 once and after that we only said ‘Hi’ when we saw each other along the corridors in school as I was placed in the best class, the other two were in the average classes. It was again in Primary 5 when I met 5 very friendly and helpful guys. This time the education system changed such that in you will be in the same class for 2 years, so it would be like when you are in 1D, you will be in 2D next year. The five of us got along very well and we were misbehaved regularly in class, especially when relief teachers came to the class. There was a lot of time for us to bond together, recess, class time, after school, and even detentions. In primary 6, we helped each other in our studies and we did fairly well. Me and two others from the ‘gang’ came to HCI, one went to VS, another to CCHS. The three of us in HCI met up frequently during recess, going home together as we all live in Tampines. However, as the Term Tests came and CCA requirements went up, we seldom contacted each other anymore. Now, when we see each other along the corridors in school, we will just acknowledge each other. In a new class, we also got to meet new friends who were equally friendly and helpful. So, what all this ‘best friends’ is about for us, is the friend whom you like, helps you, play with you, spend time with you, after you go your separate ways, you tend to miss them, but you still have other commitments you have to tend to. Looking at the two grown-up working men chatting happily, I had full of respect for them. They, had to work, family matters to attend to, being extremely busy, after so many years, they still chose a time to get together.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Online Lesson #7
The area seemed to be bombarded several times already. What used to be magnificent buildings was reduced to rubble. Pieces of concrete and other construction materials were strewn all over the ground. Bullets were either hidden among the rubble or it drove holes into the pieces of concrete, or unfortunately human bodies. The zinc roofs, which once seldom had any contact with the ground, were all over the place. Groans of pain could be heard from the soldier lying on the ground. His rifle lying not far away from his hand. Blood flowed downwards to his neck from his face as his fellow soldier helped him to bandage his wound. Bullets were placed in neat rows and strapped around his body, adding to the discomfort the wounded soldier is experiencing. The soldier helping to bandage the wound placed his feet over the wounded soldier’s knees, getting into a position where it would reduce more pain the wounded soldier is feeling, at the same, showing the hole in his pants at his knee area. The wounded soldier look almost lifeless and leaned back, closing his eyes. The discomfort his head is feeling from the hard, solid helmet he was wearing was no longer comparable to the pain he felt from his bullet-wound. As the other soldier was bandaging his wound, he let the bandage roll down, so that he could complete the job quickly, in case of a sudden attack from their enemy. Another soldier kept his left hand on his gun, at the ready, on alert for hostiles, with his right hand on the ground, supporting his weight as he took this very rare break.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
An Incident on the public transport
It was not long ago when I last took the public transport. There was an incident which I witnessed and left me feeling very disgusted and I was regretful of my actions.
That day was a Thursday and I did not have any CCA trainings on that day so I took the fastest route possible to reach my home in Tampines. I boarded bus 171 from the bus-stop on the other side of the road and went to Newton MRT. At City Hall station, I was quick enough to “charge” across the other side of the platform and lucky to find an empty non-reserved seat in one of the cubicle. Naturally, I sat down and rested my tired legs which supported by body for the past half an hour.
When the train reached the Kallang station, a grumpy looking elderly woman walked into the carriage I was in. She was carrying two big bags of what seemed like vegetables and meat to me. Before she was walked in, the whole carriage was filled with the loud and not very polite conversation between two teenage boys who were sitting on the reserved seat for the elderly, disabled, people with toddlers and pregnant woman. It was as if the old lady was their strict discipline mistress. When the old lady stepped in, the two teenage boys stopped their conversation instantly and put on two very big ear phones and blasted the music into their ears. They pretended to sleep in order not to give up their seat to the old lady.
The old lady stood next to them, placing her groceries on the ground of the MRT and leaned her body against the plastic transparent “wall” separating her and the teenage boys. One of the teenage boys did a stupid action, which got him into trouble. He opened one of his eyes and looked around to see if the old lady was still around, before “waking” his friend next to him. The old lady saw this and took her chance; she went to them and asked them politely if it was okay if they gave up their seat for her as she could not stand for too long. The teenage boys looked at her and asked if she could wait until they reached their station before giving up their seat. The elderly woman glared at them in disbelief and just shook her head in disappointment. She muttered something in dialect under her breath, which means “Parents are not doing enough to educate their children”. I looked at the elderly woman and felt sad for her, but I did not do my part to help by giving up my seat.
After this incident, I think that the teenagers action reflect the failure the education their school and parents gave them. Respecting the elderly and helping the young are one of the very important values the Chinese uphold. The teenage boys obviously did not have any of these. However, criticizing them is not correct, as I, being a witness, did not do anything to help the elderly woman. I feel that by doing this, I have let my school and parents down by not being able to carry out what they have taught me. I shall make a constant effort next time, by giving up my seat automatically when I see an elderly person come into the same public transport I am taking.
That day was a Thursday and I did not have any CCA trainings on that day so I took the fastest route possible to reach my home in Tampines. I boarded bus 171 from the bus-stop on the other side of the road and went to Newton MRT. At City Hall station, I was quick enough to “charge” across the other side of the platform and lucky to find an empty non-reserved seat in one of the cubicle. Naturally, I sat down and rested my tired legs which supported by body for the past half an hour.
When the train reached the Kallang station, a grumpy looking elderly woman walked into the carriage I was in. She was carrying two big bags of what seemed like vegetables and meat to me. Before she was walked in, the whole carriage was filled with the loud and not very polite conversation between two teenage boys who were sitting on the reserved seat for the elderly, disabled, people with toddlers and pregnant woman. It was as if the old lady was their strict discipline mistress. When the old lady stepped in, the two teenage boys stopped their conversation instantly and put on two very big ear phones and blasted the music into their ears. They pretended to sleep in order not to give up their seat to the old lady.
The old lady stood next to them, placing her groceries on the ground of the MRT and leaned her body against the plastic transparent “wall” separating her and the teenage boys. One of the teenage boys did a stupid action, which got him into trouble. He opened one of his eyes and looked around to see if the old lady was still around, before “waking” his friend next to him. The old lady saw this and took her chance; she went to them and asked them politely if it was okay if they gave up their seat for her as she could not stand for too long. The teenage boys looked at her and asked if she could wait until they reached their station before giving up their seat. The elderly woman glared at them in disbelief and just shook her head in disappointment. She muttered something in dialect under her breath, which means “Parents are not doing enough to educate their children”. I looked at the elderly woman and felt sad for her, but I did not do my part to help by giving up my seat.
After this incident, I think that the teenagers action reflect the failure the education their school and parents gave them. Respecting the elderly and helping the young are one of the very important values the Chinese uphold. The teenage boys obviously did not have any of these. However, criticizing them is not correct, as I, being a witness, did not do anything to help the elderly woman. I feel that by doing this, I have let my school and parents down by not being able to carry out what they have taught me. I shall make a constant effort next time, by giving up my seat automatically when I see an elderly person come into the same public transport I am taking.
Monday, February 28, 2011
My Canoe CCA
Hello everyone,
In this blog post, I am going to do a brief introduction on my CCA and why I joined it as many people have been asking me what my CCA, which is canoeing, is like. Last year, I picked canoeing as a CCA because canoeing is a competitive sport which meant that it would require a high level of fitness and strength. When I was in primary 6, I was very fat and had very poor fitness, I always admired the people around me who had six packs. So, when I went through the CCA orientation, I was being told that through the regular trainings I attend, I will be able to slim down a lot and get a defined muscular body which is something every teenage boy would want. That was one of the reason in which why I joined canoeing. The second reason was that I thought canoeing is a fun outdoor sport and I have always had a liking for water sports since young, and always set on a float in the swimming pool and used my arms to paddle.
Canoeing is an outdoor activity that commonly requires either a single-bladed paddle or a double-bladed paddle. In our school’s canoe CCA, we have many different sorts of boats. They are classified under Canoe and Kayak. Canoes are usually paddled with a single-bladed paddle and the paddler will have to kneel in the canoe. This requires high level of balance as you are prone to capsize when you lean too much to either side of the boat. Canoes are usually called C by the paddlers. Kayaks are paddled with a double-bladed paddle and the paddler usually sits in the boat. This does not mean that kayaks do not require balance as the competition kayaks are very streamlined in order to reduce resistance, this means that the paddler have make sure that he/she must not lean too much out to prevent capsize. The kayaks are called K by the paddlers. Another difference between the canoe and the kayak is that the kayak have a rudder, a short blade at the end of the boat submerged in the water which helps control direction while the canoe does not have. Although the CCA’s name is called canoeing, it maybe quite misleading at times, as it includes dragon boating as well and there is a lot of long-distance running during the trainings.
These are the different boats we have in our boat sheds at MacRitchie Reservoir:
Kayak:
K-1: single seat kayak (paddled by a single paddler)
K-2: double seated kayak (paddled by two paddlers)
K-4: four-seated kayak (paddled by four paddlers)
Canoe
C-1: single kneeling canoe (paddled by a single paddler)
C-2: double kneeling canoe (paddled by two paddlers)
Our coach and teacher-in-charge usually assign smaller-size people to the Cs while the rest are assigned to the Ks. This is due to the fact that bigger and taller size people have more central gravity than the smaller and shorter people, which means that the taller people tend to have less balance than the smaller paddlers.
The competitions we take part in, which our active teacher-in-charge, Mr Yong Yuen Cheng (well-known long distance runner) signed us up for are: Singapore Canoe Marathon, Natioanl Junior Canoeing Championships, National Schools Canoeing Championships, National Schools Dragon Boat Championships, National Canoe Championships, Club Crew World Championships and World Dragon Boat Racing Championships.
For canoe marathon, the distance ranges from 14km up to 21km. I took part in the 16km race this year and got 15th position out of the 40+ plus people who took part. Mr Yong himself took part in the K2, 21km event and got overall 1st.
For National Junior Canoeing Championships and National School Canoeing Championships which would be held in April, the distances will be 500m and 1000m. These canoeing championships are when the different schools in Singapore come together and compete against each other.
For National Schools Dragon Boat Champioships, we will race against the schools in Singapore over short distances of 300m to 500m.
Whereas for Club Crew World Championships and World Dragon Boat Championships, these are international competitions which means that we will get to travel to the country the competition is held in and represent Singapore and compete. These two competitions are dragon boat competitions.
Mr Yong takes all the competitions seriously, especially the National Junior Canoeing Championships and National Schools Canoeing Championships as Mr Yong was formerly the teacher-in-charge of the canoe team in National Junior College our rival school. Mr Yong said that he left NJC because of the poor attitude the canoe team in NJC has. When Mr Yong just joined NJC, NJC were just underdogs. But Mr Yong coached them till they won close to twenty titles under him for over a span of seven years. Mr Yong wanted to do the same to the Hwa Chong canoe team and bring back gold trophies for our school. In order to fulfill his dream, he inspired us with his own accomplishments and an inspirational movie as our team’s attitude towards him is not very positive. We were finally inspired after a few months of training under Mr Yong and experienced immense improvement.
In this blog post, I am going to do a brief introduction on my CCA and why I joined it as many people have been asking me what my CCA, which is canoeing, is like. Last year, I picked canoeing as a CCA because canoeing is a competitive sport which meant that it would require a high level of fitness and strength. When I was in primary 6, I was very fat and had very poor fitness, I always admired the people around me who had six packs. So, when I went through the CCA orientation, I was being told that through the regular trainings I attend, I will be able to slim down a lot and get a defined muscular body which is something every teenage boy would want. That was one of the reason in which why I joined canoeing. The second reason was that I thought canoeing is a fun outdoor sport and I have always had a liking for water sports since young, and always set on a float in the swimming pool and used my arms to paddle.
Canoeing is an outdoor activity that commonly requires either a single-bladed paddle or a double-bladed paddle. In our school’s canoe CCA, we have many different sorts of boats. They are classified under Canoe and Kayak. Canoes are usually paddled with a single-bladed paddle and the paddler will have to kneel in the canoe. This requires high level of balance as you are prone to capsize when you lean too much to either side of the boat. Canoes are usually called C by the paddlers. Kayaks are paddled with a double-bladed paddle and the paddler usually sits in the boat. This does not mean that kayaks do not require balance as the competition kayaks are very streamlined in order to reduce resistance, this means that the paddler have make sure that he/she must not lean too much out to prevent capsize. The kayaks are called K by the paddlers. Another difference between the canoe and the kayak is that the kayak have a rudder, a short blade at the end of the boat submerged in the water which helps control direction while the canoe does not have. Although the CCA’s name is called canoeing, it maybe quite misleading at times, as it includes dragon boating as well and there is a lot of long-distance running during the trainings.
These are the different boats we have in our boat sheds at MacRitchie Reservoir:
Kayak:
K-1: single seat kayak (paddled by a single paddler)
K-2: double seated kayak (paddled by two paddlers)
K-4: four-seated kayak (paddled by four paddlers)
Canoe
C-1: single kneeling canoe (paddled by a single paddler)
C-2: double kneeling canoe (paddled by two paddlers)
Our coach and teacher-in-charge usually assign smaller-size people to the Cs while the rest are assigned to the Ks. This is due to the fact that bigger and taller size people have more central gravity than the smaller and shorter people, which means that the taller people tend to have less balance than the smaller paddlers.
The competitions we take part in, which our active teacher-in-charge, Mr Yong Yuen Cheng (well-known long distance runner) signed us up for are: Singapore Canoe Marathon, Natioanl Junior Canoeing Championships, National Schools Canoeing Championships, National Schools Dragon Boat Championships, National Canoe Championships, Club Crew World Championships and World Dragon Boat Racing Championships.
For canoe marathon, the distance ranges from 14km up to 21km. I took part in the 16km race this year and got 15th position out of the 40+ plus people who took part. Mr Yong himself took part in the K2, 21km event and got overall 1st.
For National Junior Canoeing Championships and National School Canoeing Championships which would be held in April, the distances will be 500m and 1000m. These canoeing championships are when the different schools in Singapore come together and compete against each other.
For National Schools Dragon Boat Champioships, we will race against the schools in Singapore over short distances of 300m to 500m.
Whereas for Club Crew World Championships and World Dragon Boat Championships, these are international competitions which means that we will get to travel to the country the competition is held in and represent Singapore and compete. These two competitions are dragon boat competitions.
Mr Yong takes all the competitions seriously, especially the National Junior Canoeing Championships and National Schools Canoeing Championships as Mr Yong was formerly the teacher-in-charge of the canoe team in National Junior College our rival school. Mr Yong said that he left NJC because of the poor attitude the canoe team in NJC has. When Mr Yong just joined NJC, NJC were just underdogs. But Mr Yong coached them till they won close to twenty titles under him for over a span of seven years. Mr Yong wanted to do the same to the Hwa Chong canoe team and bring back gold trophies for our school. In order to fulfill his dream, he inspired us with his own accomplishments and an inspirational movie as our team’s attitude towards him is not very positive. We were finally inspired after a few months of training under Mr Yong and experienced immense improvement.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year, which is on the 3rd of February this year, passed a few weeks ago already. I am sharing with all of you my wonderful and special encounter this year.
Every year, to us, Chinese, we will celebrate the Lunar New Year. The Chinese New Year will be the festive period where all the shops in Singapore experience a boom in their businesses and food delivery and catering companies finding a sudden hike in orders from customers. Many preparations will be carried out before celebrating the Chinese New Year. Preparations such as packing up the mess in the house which was created during the previous year, clean up the house, getting new clothes and most importantly, for the adults – making a visit to the bank.
My family, however, is slightly different. We will pack up the house and dispose the unwanted stuff and old furniture two months before Chinese New Year, while the typical Chinese family in Singapore usually will start only a few weeks before the week the day of the New Year. We will then clean the house regularly, once every two days until the eve of the Lunar New Year. In my family, as I am already secondary two, my parents took this reason for me to clean up my room and my sister’s room. My “kiasu” parents will not waste any time as I lighten their burden. They will beat everybody else and get to the bank and draw out a huge amount of money for the red packets they will be giving out during the fifteen days of the festive period.
After all the tiring preparations, the day we had all been anxiously waiting for, and the day the adults, including my parents, are dreading have finally got closer by one day. It was the eve of the Chinese New Year, this is the day when the whole family sits down together and have a meal. But usually, for typical Singaporean Chinese, and what my family have been doing for the past few years, we will have steamboat. However, on the eve, my father decided to bring us to East Coast Beach for BBQ dinner instead. The fun did not end after the BBQ session, in continued throughout the subsequent fifteen days. On the eve, we were all allowed to stay up to as late as midnight as it is a Chinese tradition for children to stay up to the wee hours on the eve as it is an act of filial piety to our parents.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, we went to Mandai columbarium first thing in the morning to pay respects to my late relatives. After that it was a marathon of house visiting. At night, although my jaw was aching from giving festive wishes and legs pain from walking to and fro the car, my pocket was already bulging with red packets. The second day of Chinese New Year was the day which made this year’s Chinese New Year special to my family. Our Indian neighbours who just moved in recently and migrated to Singapore paid a visit to us! We had so much fun as we taught our Indian neighbours our Chinese culture and let them taste the Chinese new year goodies. When my parents gave the Indian children red packets, they taught that my parents had given them a letter and the red packet was a fanciful envelope. We had two hours of fun interacting with our new neighbours and my parents promised them that we would visit them during Deepavali also!
This year’s Chinese New Year is one that would be etched in my memory for quite some time. I hope that you had a good Chinese New Year also!
Every year, to us, Chinese, we will celebrate the Lunar New Year. The Chinese New Year will be the festive period where all the shops in Singapore experience a boom in their businesses and food delivery and catering companies finding a sudden hike in orders from customers. Many preparations will be carried out before celebrating the Chinese New Year. Preparations such as packing up the mess in the house which was created during the previous year, clean up the house, getting new clothes and most importantly, for the adults – making a visit to the bank.
My family, however, is slightly different. We will pack up the house and dispose the unwanted stuff and old furniture two months before Chinese New Year, while the typical Chinese family in Singapore usually will start only a few weeks before the week the day of the New Year. We will then clean the house regularly, once every two days until the eve of the Lunar New Year. In my family, as I am already secondary two, my parents took this reason for me to clean up my room and my sister’s room. My “kiasu” parents will not waste any time as I lighten their burden. They will beat everybody else and get to the bank and draw out a huge amount of money for the red packets they will be giving out during the fifteen days of the festive period.
After all the tiring preparations, the day we had all been anxiously waiting for, and the day the adults, including my parents, are dreading have finally got closer by one day. It was the eve of the Chinese New Year, this is the day when the whole family sits down together and have a meal. But usually, for typical Singaporean Chinese, and what my family have been doing for the past few years, we will have steamboat. However, on the eve, my father decided to bring us to East Coast Beach for BBQ dinner instead. The fun did not end after the BBQ session, in continued throughout the subsequent fifteen days. On the eve, we were all allowed to stay up to as late as midnight as it is a Chinese tradition for children to stay up to the wee hours on the eve as it is an act of filial piety to our parents.
On the first day of the Lunar New Year, we went to Mandai columbarium first thing in the morning to pay respects to my late relatives. After that it was a marathon of house visiting. At night, although my jaw was aching from giving festive wishes and legs pain from walking to and fro the car, my pocket was already bulging with red packets. The second day of Chinese New Year was the day which made this year’s Chinese New Year special to my family. Our Indian neighbours who just moved in recently and migrated to Singapore paid a visit to us! We had so much fun as we taught our Indian neighbours our Chinese culture and let them taste the Chinese new year goodies. When my parents gave the Indian children red packets, they taught that my parents had given them a letter and the red packet was a fanciful envelope. We had two hours of fun interacting with our new neighbours and my parents promised them that we would visit them during Deepavali also!
This year’s Chinese New Year is one that would be etched in my memory for quite some time. I hope that you had a good Chinese New Year also!
Movie Review on Pearl Harbour
Hello all, I have just watched this movie with my family a few days ago, and I few that this movie is suitable for us all as it is a little part of history.
Pearl Harbor is filmed based on the storyline of the Japanese’s attack on Pearl Harbour during Christmas’s Eve. This was also the reason which got the United States of America involved in the Pacific and European war. “Pear Harbour” is also a movie on romance as it shows two army pilots and their love interests.
The war film shows two best friends, Rafe and Danny, the protagonists of the film, who are also very talented pilots in the United States air force. Both Rafe and Danny’s friendship started since their childhood days, growing up on a farm, and having the same dream of becoming pilots. Halfway through the show, Rafe volunteers to go to England and fight with the British Royal Air Force against the Nazis, while Danny remains in America, without combat.
Apart from being a war film, it is also a movie on the complicated romance between Rafe, Danny and Evelyn, a nurse Rafe met while going for his fitness test. Rafe fell for Evelyn when he saw her and tricked the young lady into coming for a date. When Danny got word of Rafe being shot in combat and presumed dead, he and Evelyn turned to each other for comfort and fell in love with each other. However, to Danny and Evelyn’s misfortune, Rafe survived. What happened after that? I am not telling, as it would spoil the suspense, so watch the movie to find out.
There are many interesting dog fights throughout the show which was what captivated my attention during the movie. The battle of Pearl Harbor itself caused me to sit on the couch with my eyes glued to the television and my mouth slightly ajar. The visuals are very beautiful and seemed almost real. Itis certainly one of the finest bombing scenes I have watched so far.
The thrilling and exciting show consists of many stunning military manoeuvrings and the attack on Pearl Harbor, and romance. However, I feel that the flaw in “Pearl Harbour” is that it showed too much on the love story and it should have filmed more the dog fights and training sessions the pilots of the United States air force undergo and how Rafe miraculously survived despite being in his plane when it got shot down by the Nazis. This film brings the world war and the men and women who lived through it or died fighting it, back to the people watching it, who may not recall much about or do not even know that such a battle was even fought before. I feel that this movie should be recommended to students our age as we are also studying the second world war history.
Pearl Harbor is filmed based on the storyline of the Japanese’s attack on Pearl Harbour during Christmas’s Eve. This was also the reason which got the United States of America involved in the Pacific and European war. “Pear Harbour” is also a movie on romance as it shows two army pilots and their love interests.
The war film shows two best friends, Rafe and Danny, the protagonists of the film, who are also very talented pilots in the United States air force. Both Rafe and Danny’s friendship started since their childhood days, growing up on a farm, and having the same dream of becoming pilots. Halfway through the show, Rafe volunteers to go to England and fight with the British Royal Air Force against the Nazis, while Danny remains in America, without combat.
Apart from being a war film, it is also a movie on the complicated romance between Rafe, Danny and Evelyn, a nurse Rafe met while going for his fitness test. Rafe fell for Evelyn when he saw her and tricked the young lady into coming for a date. When Danny got word of Rafe being shot in combat and presumed dead, he and Evelyn turned to each other for comfort and fell in love with each other. However, to Danny and Evelyn’s misfortune, Rafe survived. What happened after that? I am not telling, as it would spoil the suspense, so watch the movie to find out.
There are many interesting dog fights throughout the show which was what captivated my attention during the movie. The battle of Pearl Harbor itself caused me to sit on the couch with my eyes glued to the television and my mouth slightly ajar. The visuals are very beautiful and seemed almost real. Itis certainly one of the finest bombing scenes I have watched so far.
The thrilling and exciting show consists of many stunning military manoeuvrings and the attack on Pearl Harbor, and romance. However, I feel that the flaw in “Pearl Harbour” is that it showed too much on the love story and it should have filmed more the dog fights and training sessions the pilots of the United States air force undergo and how Rafe miraculously survived despite being in his plane when it got shot down by the Nazis. This film brings the world war and the men and women who lived through it or died fighting it, back to the people watching it, who may not recall much about or do not even know that such a battle was even fought before. I feel that this movie should be recommended to students our age as we are also studying the second world war history.
Book Review on "Call of the Wild"
Hello all,
I have read this book not along ago and I feel that it is worth sharing it with you guys. The book’s title is “Call of the Wild” by Jack London. The protagonist of the book is a dog named Buck and the book is written from the dog's point of view. In the point of view of a dog, we get to observe the lives of humans with all of their strengths and weaknesses.
Being a pampered and honoured pet of a judge, Buck who is a cross-breed between a St. Bernard and a Scotch Shepherd, is sold by an employee who is a gambling addict, to be taken to the Klondike to work as a sled dog.
When Buck is sent to his new environment, he is forced to endure and adapt to the brutal treatment, starvation in order to survive. His harsh and new environment is totally different from the luxurious one he had with his previous owner.
In the Klondike, the dogs are not treated like pets with feelings, and can endure any amount of cruelty. The deaths of these animals are seen only as an inconvenience to the mushers.
As Buck and other sled dogs suffer punishments from whips, clubs, and fangs for disobedience or out of total randomness, humans are frequently shown as thoughtless and cruel, not just to animals but to humans as well.
Buck does encounter one man who becomes his bonded owner. Buck is loyal to his owner in many circumstances right to the end. Through this relationship, the owner portrays that not all men of the Klondike were thoughtless and cruel. There were some ethical men, but many were not of admirable character.
As Buck thrives under the care of his new owner who treats him with kindness, he increasingly learns and explores his primitive instincts. He slowly transforms from a pampered rich man's pet to a tough and seasoned lead dog of the Klondike. Buck develops his ability to kill for food instead of being dependent of humans for nutrients. He is exposed to his wild cousins the wolves and increasingly become interested in interaction with them.
The Call of the Wild is an excellent book to read about the Klondike, but it is not an innocent children's book. It contains violence as well as examples of animal cruelty that while not glorified, may not appeal to all readers. When I first picked up the book, I thought that it was merely a normal dog story. Due to the violence included inside the book, I think that people around my age is most suitable to read the book because our minds are developed and we are able to think in a mature way. This book may also change your point of view towards these dogs, and if you are an owner of a dog and you are sick of it simply because it is too old, I hope that after this book, you may reconsider your actions. Thank you.
I have read this book not along ago and I feel that it is worth sharing it with you guys. The book’s title is “Call of the Wild” by Jack London. The protagonist of the book is a dog named Buck and the book is written from the dog's point of view. In the point of view of a dog, we get to observe the lives of humans with all of their strengths and weaknesses.
Being a pampered and honoured pet of a judge, Buck who is a cross-breed between a St. Bernard and a Scotch Shepherd, is sold by an employee who is a gambling addict, to be taken to the Klondike to work as a sled dog.
When Buck is sent to his new environment, he is forced to endure and adapt to the brutal treatment, starvation in order to survive. His harsh and new environment is totally different from the luxurious one he had with his previous owner.
In the Klondike, the dogs are not treated like pets with feelings, and can endure any amount of cruelty. The deaths of these animals are seen only as an inconvenience to the mushers.
As Buck and other sled dogs suffer punishments from whips, clubs, and fangs for disobedience or out of total randomness, humans are frequently shown as thoughtless and cruel, not just to animals but to humans as well.
Buck does encounter one man who becomes his bonded owner. Buck is loyal to his owner in many circumstances right to the end. Through this relationship, the owner portrays that not all men of the Klondike were thoughtless and cruel. There were some ethical men, but many were not of admirable character.
As Buck thrives under the care of his new owner who treats him with kindness, he increasingly learns and explores his primitive instincts. He slowly transforms from a pampered rich man's pet to a tough and seasoned lead dog of the Klondike. Buck develops his ability to kill for food instead of being dependent of humans for nutrients. He is exposed to his wild cousins the wolves and increasingly become interested in interaction with them.
The Call of the Wild is an excellent book to read about the Klondike, but it is not an innocent children's book. It contains violence as well as examples of animal cruelty that while not glorified, may not appeal to all readers. When I first picked up the book, I thought that it was merely a normal dog story. Due to the violence included inside the book, I think that people around my age is most suitable to read the book because our minds are developed and we are able to think in a mature way. This book may also change your point of view towards these dogs, and if you are an owner of a dog and you are sick of it simply because it is too old, I hope that after this book, you may reconsider your actions. Thank you.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Book Review on "Animal Farm" :D
I have recently finished reading "Animal Farm". I borrowed the book from my friend from Primary school as he had done literature on it in his secondary school. So, let me share what I feel and a few contents on the book.
Animal Farm, is a bit like the Russian Revolution. There was a meeting of the animals of Manor Farm after the owner, Mr. Jones, went to bed drunk. Old Major, a boar, had a dream of a farm governed by the animals, without Mr. Jones and other humans stealing work, where all the animals were free and equal and worked to support themselves instead of their masters. However, Old Major died before his vision is seen, but two pigs, Napoleon and Snowball, shows his vision and convince the animals that it's possible. The next time Jones treats them cruelly, the animals rebelled, drove him and his wife off the farm, and took it over for themselves.
At first, the rebellion was an amazing success. The farm animals were giddy with joy and quickly changed how everything is done on the farm. Seven basic principles were drawn up:
1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2. Whatever goes upon four legs or has wings is a friend.
3. No animal shall wear clothes.
4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5. No animal shall drink alcohol.
6. No animal shall kill any other animal.
7. All animals are equal.
The animals had to do their tasks efficiently and work more collectively, the harvest was the best they had ever seen, and everyone has more food and leisure. The only sign of the trouble to come is that the pigs don't seem to do much of the physical work. The reason for this was that the pigs were the best ones to do the organizing and directing. But slowly, the pigs take more and more control, and principles begin to change conveniently, times get worse, and Napoleon slowly comes into control.
What happens afterwards is a classic example of corruption. Snowball, while making plans to build a windmill, which would would further improve the conditions on the farm, was attacked and chased out of Animal Farm by Napoleon and a pack of ferocious dogs. What follows was that Squealer, who was the propaganda manager, changed the facts by lying to the animals that Snowball was in fact, a traitor, and it was Napoleon who exposed him and chased him out. Through deception and treachery, they turned the animals on Snowball and made them work like slaves, while the pigs and dogs enjoyed themselves. They tried to build the windmill, but it ended up being destroyed every time. It showed the slow change from pigs, to humans. The rules were also changed by the party in power, in this case, Napoleon. They were changed to:
1. Four legs good, two legs better.
2. No animal shall wear clothes.
3. No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets.
4. No animal shall drink alcohol to excess.
5. No animal shall kill any other animal.
6. All animals are equal but some are more equal than others.
This story clearly depicts how some humans act in politics when they are in power. They will gain the trusts of the fellow citizens and when they achieved the highest position, they betray the citizens of the country. Forcing them to do things that would only benefit the corrupt leader. They will also go to certain extents by getting rid of people who oppose their rule. The unfortunate country with the corrupt leader would then slide downwards for example from a first world country to a third world country.
Read the book to find out what happened to the farm in the end. Thank you.
Animal Farm, is a bit like the Russian Revolution. There was a meeting of the animals of Manor Farm after the owner, Mr. Jones, went to bed drunk. Old Major, a boar, had a dream of a farm governed by the animals, without Mr. Jones and other humans stealing work, where all the animals were free and equal and worked to support themselves instead of their masters. However, Old Major died before his vision is seen, but two pigs, Napoleon and Snowball, shows his vision and convince the animals that it's possible. The next time Jones treats them cruelly, the animals rebelled, drove him and his wife off the farm, and took it over for themselves.
At first, the rebellion was an amazing success. The farm animals were giddy with joy and quickly changed how everything is done on the farm. Seven basic principles were drawn up:
1. Whatever goes upon two legs is an enemy.
2. Whatever goes upon four legs or has wings is a friend.
3. No animal shall wear clothes.
4. No animal shall sleep in a bed.
5. No animal shall drink alcohol.
6. No animal shall kill any other animal.
7. All animals are equal.
The animals had to do their tasks efficiently and work more collectively, the harvest was the best they had ever seen, and everyone has more food and leisure. The only sign of the trouble to come is that the pigs don't seem to do much of the physical work. The reason for this was that the pigs were the best ones to do the organizing and directing. But slowly, the pigs take more and more control, and principles begin to change conveniently, times get worse, and Napoleon slowly comes into control.
What happens afterwards is a classic example of corruption. Snowball, while making plans to build a windmill, which would would further improve the conditions on the farm, was attacked and chased out of Animal Farm by Napoleon and a pack of ferocious dogs. What follows was that Squealer, who was the propaganda manager, changed the facts by lying to the animals that Snowball was in fact, a traitor, and it was Napoleon who exposed him and chased him out. Through deception and treachery, they turned the animals on Snowball and made them work like slaves, while the pigs and dogs enjoyed themselves. They tried to build the windmill, but it ended up being destroyed every time. It showed the slow change from pigs, to humans. The rules were also changed by the party in power, in this case, Napoleon. They were changed to:
1. Four legs good, two legs better.
2. No animal shall wear clothes.
3. No animal shall sleep in a bed with sheets.
4. No animal shall drink alcohol to excess.
5. No animal shall kill any other animal.
6. All animals are equal but some are more equal than others.
This story clearly depicts how some humans act in politics when they are in power. They will gain the trusts of the fellow citizens and when they achieved the highest position, they betray the citizens of the country. Forcing them to do things that would only benefit the corrupt leader. They will also go to certain extents by getting rid of people who oppose their rule. The unfortunate country with the corrupt leader would then slide downwards for example from a first world country to a third world country.
Read the book to find out what happened to the farm in the end. Thank you.
Tolerance and Intolerance of Scout
At the beginning of the novel, Scout shows high amount of intolerance to people around her. She gets irritated easily and acts like a tom boy. There were a few instances when Scout tried using violence to solve problems or when she was provoked. Some of the more significant examples are when Scout tried to wrestle Walter when he got her in trouble. Scout also beat up Dill when he called Atticus a “runt” and also a “nigger-lover”.
However, subsequently as the story develops, and Scout grows older, she started showing levels of tolerance. One example was when Scout sympathized with Tom Robinson when it was very clear Tom was innocent but he was sentenced to death just because he had colored skin. Being coloured in America at that time was like being dropped down a standard below humans. Scout was also able to tolerate insults others throw at her and her father for defending the Negro. Scout, was able to tolerate and to make her stand known to others and reason out with them on why Tom Robinson is being wrongly treated. Towards the end of the novel, Scout also did not mind when she sat beside Boo Radley while the adults were talking about what happened when Scout and Jem were attacked by Ewell. Scout also agreed to send Boo Radley to the Radley porch.
Hence, my conclusion is that Scout tolerance grows as she gets older.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1il-VqYvnLxcbQkAHmZLaTTseSqE0_xjP_ThEliEAfo8/edit?hl=en#
However, subsequently as the story develops, and Scout grows older, she started showing levels of tolerance. One example was when Scout sympathized with Tom Robinson when it was very clear Tom was innocent but he was sentenced to death just because he had colored skin. Being coloured in America at that time was like being dropped down a standard below humans. Scout was also able to tolerate insults others throw at her and her father for defending the Negro. Scout, was able to tolerate and to make her stand known to others and reason out with them on why Tom Robinson is being wrongly treated. Towards the end of the novel, Scout also did not mind when she sat beside Boo Radley while the adults were talking about what happened when Scout and Jem were attacked by Ewell. Scout also agreed to send Boo Radley to the Radley porch.
Hence, my conclusion is that Scout tolerance grows as she gets older.
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1il-VqYvnLxcbQkAHmZLaTTseSqE0_xjP_ThEliEAfo8/edit?hl=en#
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Blog-Writing Prompt #10
Write about a vivid childhood memory of an event that helped to influence the person you are today.
An event in primary school helped to influence the person I am today and is also an important reason to why I am studying in the school I am studying in today. Back in primary 2, when it is the "streaming" year, where we would be allocated to different classes, according to our academic abilities. During that year, I totally slacked off, and played computer games, watched cartoons, read comics and went cycling with my cousins almost everyday. I only stopped all these during the week before the semestral examinations. However, I did not fully utilise the whole week for revisions. My parents had to resort ot corporal punishments to keep from being restless, and usually it would take 2 days for me to settle down and start "basic" work, because I did not pay attention to teachers in lessons, neither did I do their homework.
The end of year results were devastating and I was being allocated to the last class in standard. So, in primary 3, the experiences in that class, led me to "waking up from my deep dream" and start serious work. Students in that class were all being looked down upon, by some teachers and most of the students. When the teachers were scolding someone fromt the best class, it would always include threats to being transferred into our class. There were even a few times, our form teacher was so angry that she scolded us, "You people are already so stupid. Why can't you people just stop being so restless. You people are going to have a hard time in Primary 6!"
I was furious about the teacher's remarks about us. I decided that I should prove her wrong. Whenever, a fellow school mate sees our class, they will also call it the "Idiot Class" such that the school principal had to address the school and threatened to punish whoever who gave our class names again. I worked hard for that year, and emerged top in standard, even over taking people from the best class. Since then, I have learnt my lesson, and stopped slacking around and screwing up my academic studies.
An event in primary school helped to influence the person I am today and is also an important reason to why I am studying in the school I am studying in today. Back in primary 2, when it is the "streaming" year, where we would be allocated to different classes, according to our academic abilities. During that year, I totally slacked off, and played computer games, watched cartoons, read comics and went cycling with my cousins almost everyday. I only stopped all these during the week before the semestral examinations. However, I did not fully utilise the whole week for revisions. My parents had to resort ot corporal punishments to keep from being restless, and usually it would take 2 days for me to settle down and start "basic" work, because I did not pay attention to teachers in lessons, neither did I do their homework.
The end of year results were devastating and I was being allocated to the last class in standard. So, in primary 3, the experiences in that class, led me to "waking up from my deep dream" and start serious work. Students in that class were all being looked down upon, by some teachers and most of the students. When the teachers were scolding someone fromt the best class, it would always include threats to being transferred into our class. There were even a few times, our form teacher was so angry that she scolded us, "You people are already so stupid. Why can't you people just stop being so restless. You people are going to have a hard time in Primary 6!"
I was furious about the teacher's remarks about us. I decided that I should prove her wrong. Whenever, a fellow school mate sees our class, they will also call it the "Idiot Class" such that the school principal had to address the school and threatened to punish whoever who gave our class names again. I worked hard for that year, and emerged top in standard, even over taking people from the best class. Since then, I have learnt my lesson, and stopped slacking around and screwing up my academic studies.
Monday, January 24, 2011
HBL - Comic Strips
The title for this comic strip is: The Blind Man
The introduction is there was a blind man busking on the street. Then a group of children happened to walk by.
A mischievous child decided to disturb the old man by poking him and said it aloud to his other friends.
Just as he was about to poke the blind man, the blind man spoke and said that he heard what the young boy said, which startled the young boy as he thought the blind man was fully handicaped.
I think that this tells us that we should not take advantage of those who are less fortunate than us, and if we try to do so, they would always be sharper in one of the five senses than we are.
Friday, January 14, 2011
LA Ace
Have you ever been part of a group of people who were unkind to one or some individuals? What was the circumstance? How did you act? What did you feel?
In classes, or groups being allocated by someone else, there would often be one or two individuals who are being disliked by the rest, either because of their appearances or attitude towards others. I am always lucky to be not to be disliked or isolated by the rest of the class/group. I have always made it a point to behave appropriately whenever I am allocated to a group, and "blend" into the crowd and not be the odd one out.
I have been in groups/classes where one or two individuals are being disliked by the rest of the group members/classmates. But, a girl in my primary four class have been isolated and treated very unkindly that it was even considered bully by the discipline mistress. That is a case which I could remember very clearly, even up till now. During the first day of school, the girl, Amelia Ho, did something which caused the class to dislike her. She boasted to everyone that she was the only girl in the level who owns a phone. It was since she started boasting to everyone about her phone, we started to dislike her and started calling her names and sabotaging her.
The other boys gave her nasty names and created booby traps for her by quickly pouring water onto her seat when she was about to sit down, once and there was another time we tricked her into going to the general office to collect something from her mother, which turned out to be false, thus making a fool of herself. There was once, I did something very nasty to Amelia, which I regret. I told Amelia that the boys hid her belongings at the boys' toilet. On her way to retrieve her things, she was being ambushed by the boys and got handfuls of soil and trash thrown at her. I greatly regret my actions, coming to think of it, as I betrayed her trust she had for me as I did not disturb her directly.
The girls in the class were also very mean to her, by not inviting her to their parties and class gatherings. They often talked behind her back and complained to the teacher secretly about the rules Amelia flouted, even if the offence was very minor. Until one day, the discipline mistress made a visit to the class and gave us a very stern warning, that if we bullied Amelia further, the punishment would be very severe. The class were obviously very frightened, and we did not dare to disobey. However, the discipline mistress's visit deepened the hatred the class had for her but we stopped disturbing her directly. Instead, we laughed loudly and made fun of Amelia whenever she did something stupid. Some girls would also talk about the mistake Amelia had committed loudly when Amelia was in hearing range.
Then, the class goal was reached one day when we learnt that Amelia transferred to another school. The class cheered when the form teacher walked out of the classroom after reprimanding us for ill-treating her. Now, thinking back about what I did, I feel remorseful for what I done as I had hurt someone very deeply and for what she had done, by just merely boasting, she does not deserve this type of treatment from us.
In classes, or groups being allocated by someone else, there would often be one or two individuals who are being disliked by the rest, either because of their appearances or attitude towards others. I am always lucky to be not to be disliked or isolated by the rest of the class/group. I have always made it a point to behave appropriately whenever I am allocated to a group, and "blend" into the crowd and not be the odd one out.
I have been in groups/classes where one or two individuals are being disliked by the rest of the group members/classmates. But, a girl in my primary four class have been isolated and treated very unkindly that it was even considered bully by the discipline mistress. That is a case which I could remember very clearly, even up till now. During the first day of school, the girl, Amelia Ho, did something which caused the class to dislike her. She boasted to everyone that she was the only girl in the level who owns a phone. It was since she started boasting to everyone about her phone, we started to dislike her and started calling her names and sabotaging her.
The other boys gave her nasty names and created booby traps for her by quickly pouring water onto her seat when she was about to sit down, once and there was another time we tricked her into going to the general office to collect something from her mother, which turned out to be false, thus making a fool of herself. There was once, I did something very nasty to Amelia, which I regret. I told Amelia that the boys hid her belongings at the boys' toilet. On her way to retrieve her things, she was being ambushed by the boys and got handfuls of soil and trash thrown at her. I greatly regret my actions, coming to think of it, as I betrayed her trust she had for me as I did not disturb her directly.
The girls in the class were also very mean to her, by not inviting her to their parties and class gatherings. They often talked behind her back and complained to the teacher secretly about the rules Amelia flouted, even if the offence was very minor. Until one day, the discipline mistress made a visit to the class and gave us a very stern warning, that if we bullied Amelia further, the punishment would be very severe. The class were obviously very frightened, and we did not dare to disobey. However, the discipline mistress's visit deepened the hatred the class had for her but we stopped disturbing her directly. Instead, we laughed loudly and made fun of Amelia whenever she did something stupid. Some girls would also talk about the mistake Amelia had committed loudly when Amelia was in hearing range.
Then, the class goal was reached one day when we learnt that Amelia transferred to another school. The class cheered when the form teacher walked out of the classroom after reprimanding us for ill-treating her. Now, thinking back about what I did, I feel remorseful for what I done as I had hurt someone very deeply and for what she had done, by just merely boasting, she does not deserve this type of treatment from us.
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