If I was asked which event of 2009 has stirred up the most excitement amongst students, I would frankly tell you without dithering that it was none other then the school’s Homecoming Day.
Some would say rather truthfully that the hard effort put in the whole event only made the results seem much more meaningful to them while other students might confidently declare that it was the awards that motivated them to come. For me, as part of the Uniformed Group (UG) and an awardee, it was all of these.
I can boldly say that the cadets from the various UGs had immersed themselves in the whole Speech Day parade, as it was a chance for us to impress the public, being the niche in the school. It had been months of sweat and toil and numerous selections that led us to this final day, where few could make it to the Guard of Honour, wearing the ‘Number One’ uniform. With crisp uniforms in tip-top condition and the will to perform in the parade, hardship meant nothing to us as we marched united as a squad. Although I admit that I did feel slightly lonely as my friends were not there, I quickly got over the gloom and bounced back, showing the amount of perseverance the school has inculcated into Clementeens.
The hustle and bustle of the crowd was the result of hard work and sheer determination, generating a lot of merriment, quite the contrary to the formal prize-giving ceremony up in the hall. Not that it was dreary, it just brought a sense of formality to the hall. In any case, it was a glorious moment; it was OUR glorious moment to be precise. How many times can students actually go on stage to receive an award for something that they had worked really hard for?
We received our certificates and vouchers and shook hands with the “biggies”. Despite the many practices, I still made mistakes – I extended the wrong hand, and laughed at myself backstage. Also, my seniors who topped in the O’levels were there to receive their awards and the Multimedia Services included videos portraying CTSS’s glorious years, of her aging gracefully into a school of excellence. It was truly inspiring.
The ceremony ended with a bang. It had the Malay and Indian dance performance; both whom received ‘Gold with Honours’ in the SYF Central Judging. It was well coordinated and the choreography was beautifully expressed by our own aesthetically-gifted Clementeens. The lion dance troupe then officially opened the carnival with Dr Amy Khor as our Guest-of-Honour.
The celebration was not perfect but it was indeed a fulfilling and enriching one. I can now look back at the photos feeling waves of nostalgia washing over me. I am both proud of the imperfections that made everything perfect and I truly believe that the school will work at its best, creating historical milestones for the future generations and reach new pinnacles of achievements!
Dayna Chong, 3D1
This comment I'm going to make is not pertaining to the above post, but just a new suggestion.
ReplyDeleteIf I’m not mistaken, the school only allows shoes that’s at least 85% white. Personally, my suggestion would be shoes that are at least 50% white, in particular sport shoes. For example, the sport shoes that I’d like to wear is 50% white and 50% blue. I can’t comprehend the reason for the school implementing the idea that students should only be allowed to wear shoes that are >85% white. I believe that wearing shoes that are at approximately 50% white should be quite acceptable, regardless of the school’s reasons for restricting the colour of shoes that students wear to school. Firstly, it saves cost for students who already have shoes at home that fulfill the above criteria. Secondly, it greatly benefits students during their PE lessons. To date, students are only allowed to wear sport shoes on certain occasions such as the annual sports carnival and NAPFA test. I believe that with this implementation of being able to wear sport shoes of a certain criteria (>50% white) to school, they do not have to face the trouble of bringing their sport shoes in a separate shoe bag just for their NAPFA test. However, the main reason that students should be allowed to wear sport shoes during PE is that it’s after all the appropriate footwear to be worn during PE lessons or any sports. By wearing the proper footwear, unwanted injuries can be reduced to the minimum and comfort and ease can be brought to the students while they engage in PE lessons. I sincerely hope that anyone who reads this can consider my suggestions seriously. I’m definite that it’d be a win-win situation because not only does the school put themselves in the students’ shoes, the students would thus feel a sense of anticipation daily when they come to school due to the flexibility the school has granted them in allowing sport shoes to be worn to school. I believe that wearing sport shoes does not necessarily portray to the public that CTSS students aren’t disciplined students, as what I suggest is just 50% of another colour, preferably that of sport shoes in addition to white. I look forward to a further implementation on this issue of sport shoes, at least the allowance for students to wear sport shoes during PE lessons, to provide a favourable environment for students to engage in fun-filled and safe physical sports. Thank you for your time to read this suggestion.