welcome tea

school's not really a blast.

for the first week it's just rushing to queue up for the readings bundles and whatever textbooks that i need to buy. and the lectures are all mostly introductory ones. ah but the tons of reading i have to do, is enough to just deflate my spirits. in fact for once i really have to be very much learn independently, which is something i have to get used to. and the tutorial ballotting system is really ridiculous. i'm too lazy to even bother about it now.

so i went for 2 welcome teas the past week. the malay society one was held 1st. played this superhero dress-up game, where they asked me to put hats under my shirts to make me look muscular. well, of course it looked like boobs! althought i must say at least i did win the final challenge! haha. ah but the muslim society welcome tea was much more refreshing.

met alot of international muslim students, like those from pakistan, iran, myanmar, mauritius, bangladesh and the list goes on. it was really an eye-opener just interacting with them. it's a hard feeling to describe, when you get to meet fellow muslims from across the globe and exchange your thoughts and feelings. i wonder how these people really get through with their lives in their war-torn, poverty-stricken countries, where there is political instability, and the threat of war is very real. countries where the trains still run on diesel, where freedom of speech is strictly forbidden and so on. it makes me think that despite such obstacles, people still believe in the hope that the religion brings. hope springs eternal as they say, and the fact that they are willing to part with their families to actually find a better future is amazing. such is the strength of their willingness to travel to further their studies. living alone in a foreign land is extremely daunting and they risk being outcasted. i really admire such people. it's really interesting to interact with them honestly.

and just now i had a tuition class in the morning, under the mendaki tuition programme for malay/muslim students. i was a relief for some tutor who couldn't make it. i thought sec 3 express english. and from the way i see it, i think we're gonna have a huge problem at hand in the years to come.

the students just don't have the right attitude! stupidity is 1 thing, but attitude is another. if you are just not born smart, the do it the tried and tested way - through hard work. one can be stupid yet achieve goals in life. and that is if you have the right attitude. even the most smartest person in the world will never be succesful if he chooses to be lazy and not make full use of his own potential. and those kids that i were taking are the future of the nation! the very ones that will make the step up when they come of age! the very ones who will decide the path the nation would tread upon!

on one hand, we see more malay people becoming more successful - we see more doctors, lawyers, engineers and the what have you. but on the other hand, more people are dropping out of schools, more truancy cases, more shotgun marriages and the what have you. yesterday one lecturer pointed out the suicide cases among singaporeans are the lowest among the malay/muslim community. but of course, that's not the real picture. pre-marital sex rates, abortion cases, divorce rates have been increasing for the malay/muslim community. and the real reason for such things to happen?

the lack or guidance and education. but as i've said before, one has to help himself too. teaching someone to fish today for a living doesn't guarantee he'll drag his lazy ass to the sea tomorrow to fish on his own. one can be the most knowledgeable person on the planet, but without the right attitude, i doubt he can be successful. and the scary thing is alot of kids do not realise the importance of education. the paper chase is inevitable in a resource-scarce city-state like ours. like it or not, realisty is as such. none of them are thinking practically! as if i have a choice to not want to study too.

it's really scary. and of course, those students i took on just now are not the worst of the lot. if such trends persist, i shudder to think of the future. i get scared thinking of my own personal future. don't such kids get scared of the consequences and repercussions they will face if they falter?

someone should just invent a reality-check mirror where if you look into it, your reflection will just scream its lungs out at you or just give you tight slaps as reality checks.