Counting Down

For people who have not been on the calendar following closely on the dates, let this be a gentle reminder to you and of course to myself that today is the twenty-fourth day of August, Year 2008. In just a short span of 20-days time, I will be bidding farewell to a civilian lifestyle that I have been so accustomed to for the past nineteen years, enlisting for my National Service to be trained as a soldier to defend this island that I call 'Home'.

Two years of conscription, two years of pain...

I don't know. I really don't know... There are simply too many questions and uncertainties that are occupying my thoughts every single moment. As the date draws nearer each day, my heart seems to sink further one bit. No appropriate words can easily describe how I actually feel and I really do not know what I can do at this moment of time to resolve this issue. Maybe for now, pre-enlistees like myself are not in any position to give much comments, but I do seriously hope and pray hard that everything which I will face will proceed on smoothly.

In fact, deep down in my heart, I do not hold any remonstration for this compulsory system of conscription in Singapore, nor do I have any hatred for the then minister who initiated the program. I fully understand the importance of National Service and I have full respect for the program to safeguard the land of Singapore. Apparently, this is the reality that every Singaporean son must face, right from the first day that we were brought to this Earth.

Generations of Singaporean men have gone through this rite of passage. They have sweated. They have toiled. They have lived. Some may have died. Many have survived the hardship, so will I. Ultimately, this is my country and hanging high up any state building is my flag. No matter how tough the regimental life in P.Tekong will get, I will try my best to appreciate all challenges that I will face.

Anyway, I have recently resigned from my temporary position in that investment company which I had worked in for the past five months. Although there might be a tinge of dejection for myself on the last day, as I did a final clean-up of my desk and greeted my colleages goodbye, I will be concentrating hard to work on my Annual Camp assignment for the next few weeks. First up, which is the most important one, will be to complete my design for the Group Gateway.

For the slected NPC scouts who were in school on Saturday, they should have witness the large-scale structure in contrast to their small gadgets that they have built. Anyway, a Test-Build was done that day and below are some photos to share. Look and compare the height of the tower to that of an average adult height.

...Constructing...

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...Final Group Shot...

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Though the structure may not be the actual Gateway for our Group Annual Camp, I would still like to take the opportunity to thank the following Leaders and Scouts for making the construction of this 9.5metre tower possible. Every single lashing, every little knot and every strength that we have put in have paid off.

Leaders: SLKeming, SL Willy, ASL Xinwei, ASL JiaJie, ASL Edmund, AVSL Renjie

Scouts: Yakun, Nicholas

Undeniably, all of us have worked hard in the torment of the rain, without any complaints, to get this tower up. Some of us have might have missed the chance to climb all the way up to the tower, be it because of personal fear or be it because of the slippery condition of the poles due to the rain, but I have only one thing to add and that is, you guys have demonstrated the true scouting spirit and that every single one of you are simply awesome!

Frankly speaking, personally I do not know the importance of this tower to every single individual who have contributed to it, but to me, it is indeed a scouting dream come true, despite some of the criticism raised with regards to the original design of the structure. Essentially, this tower is apparently my very last piece of pioneering contribution to the Group after so much dissappointment that I had faced over the years.

To see the final outcome of the tower serve as the backdrop of the 23 Eagles Scout Group Photo 2008 will be the most wonderful gift for me before I bid farewell to everyone and procced on in life.

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Till then...

...Refused To Be Average...

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