Poem on Tim Johnson

Musical [pick one]:
2. Write a poem on the shooting of Tim Johnson
February
Saturday
Rifles
In hands
Strolling
Squinting
What a sight!
They raced
Home
To the comfort
Of a black
A motherly figure
Panic
Hysteria
Phoning in distress
The man they all respect
All doors were shut, and
All windows closed, the
Streets were empty
Except for it
2 men arrive
A push of responsibility
He drops his glasses
He reads the distance and cocks the gun
Fires the weapon that makes one weak

(It looks like a vertical rifle in MS Word.... But it still has a bit of th shape here)

But
What can I say
Shock and surprise
Hang on their minds
Unbelievable, they stare
Mouths agape, they just cannot
Believe. Just like the lenses,
Their previous impressions,
Grinded into powder.
( And this is supposed to be in the shape of a bullet, fat in the middle, thin at the ends)

Flora and fauna of Maycomb

Naturalist:
1. Do a research on the natural habitat of mockingbird. In your research, include the kind of flora and fauna you think exist in Maycomb and explain why the mockingbirds live in Maycomb.

Mockingbirds are a group of New World passerine birds from the Mimidae family. They are best known for the habit of some species mimicking the songs of other birds and the sounds of insects and amphibians, often loudly and in rapid succession. There are about 17 species in three genera. They feed mainly on berries and garden insects.

They were quite significant in history as they were one of the animals from which the naturalist, Charles Darwin, gained evidence about the transmutation of species and evolution as mockingbirds Mimus thenca differed from island to island, and were closely allied in appearance to mockingbirds on the South American mainland.
Mockingbirds were given their name due to their ability to mimic the calls of dozens of other bird species. In fact, the mockingbird's Latin name, Mimus polyglottus, means many-tongued mimic. The mockingbirds have even been known to mimic the sounds of dogs and sirens! The mockingbird is especially vocal on moonlit spring nights.
Mockingbirds are known to live in open areas with thickets, farmland and shrubs. They can even be found in some residential areas or city parks. They dislike dense woodlands. They prefer to build their nests in shrubs and bushes where it is nearer to the ground. Their nests are shaped like dozens of other bird species. In fact, the mockingbird's Latin name, Mimus polyglottus, means many-tongued mimic. The mockingbirds has even been known to mimic the sounds of dogs and sirens! The mockingbird is especially vocal on moonlit spring nights. Also, insects, berries and seeds are most commonly found in such areas.

As mentioned by Atticus, mockingbirds are harmless birds that only do good, singing their beautiful songs for others to enjoy and feeding on the destructive and much hated cottonworm. Hence, it is considered a sin to kill a mockingbird in the book but I believe that it applies to real life too. There was a period of time when mockingbirds almost became extinct when many people captured them and enclosed them in cages to hear them sing.

Hence, based on the research I have done, I can think of various flora and fauna that exist in Maycomb. Maycomb does not have many tall trees besides the oak where Jem and Scout found presents from Boo. Instead, Maycomb has more grassy areas, shrubs and bushes where mockingbirds prefer to build their nests. When foraging on the ground, mockingbirds also prefer grassy areas to bare spots.

Also, there may be more fruits and flowers since mockingbirds prefer to feed on berries, seeds and insects. The presence of flowers and shorter plants makes Maycomb feel as though it is a nice place to live in as it is an open area with beautiful scenery, and array and wide variety of colours. This seems to tally with the opinions of the characters in the story. They feel secure and at ease in Maycomb County despite the rumours about Boo Radley.

With such a cheerful environment and a habitat suitable for them, mockingbirds would naturally be attracted to Maycomb county. This ties in perfectly with the storyline where Boo and Tom are depicted as mockingbirds. As Maycomb is a stagnant community where there is little change and everything is routine-like, it has become the perfect breeding ground for racism as the people have nothing better to do but gossip. Hence, Boo and Tom, one of a different nature and one of a different skin colour, are depicted as mockingbirds as they do good to the community but are looked down upon or ostracised.

In conclusion, mockingbirds prefer shrubby habitats, and are thus attracted to Maycomb as we can think about what flora and fauna can exist in Maycomb. The mockingbirds are also used to tie in with the storyline and emphasise the theme.

Kindly comment and follow!!

Hi all,

As you all know, this is my Ace Blog. So, you are welcome to give me our unbiased comments on my previous 2 posts. If you have any feedback on my layout, content, etc, yu could comment on this post too!!

Happy New Year!!
Ho Jin Yang
2I308
Golden Sheep

13 and ready for university

A wonder kid. A smart genius. A child every parent would wish for. Muhammed Haikal Abdullah Zain. He is only 13 years old but has scored straight As for his Math, Chemistry, Physics and Biology A levels examinations. Now, he is aiming for a place to study medicine in the National University of Singapore. NUS has decided to assess him and would love to accept him as he has shown himself to be exceptional. Based on Haikal, he had dreamt of studying medicine since six years old and he wishes to become a neurologist as he is fascinated by the brain.
When I read of this news, I was wondering why the name sounded so familiar. Then, I realised that I had been in the same Math Olympiad class as him before! I had met this wonder kid, sat beside this wonder kid, studied the same concepts as this wonder kid! So why didn’t some of his ability rub off on me… Haha, just joking! Indeed, ever since I have met him, I knew he had a flexible mind. He could think in many different directions and come up with solutions you would never think of! During Math Olympiad competitions, he would always be one of the winners of individual prizes! Thus, this piece of news did not come as a great surprise to me.
Yet, this led me to think about something. Haikal is pursuing his own interests. He is involved in studying the subjects and topics he is passionate about. He wants to become a neurologist as he finds the complicated brain fascinating, thus he aims to study medicine in NUS. However, if he did not have such an interest and was merely forced by his parents to work hard, then he would not have achieved such amazing results. Let us think about it this way. If his parents had wanted him to become a lawyer and disregarded his ability in Maths and Science, would he be as successful? No. No matter how smart he is, he would not wish to engage in something that entirely does not interest him. Interest results in passion. Passion results in willingness. Willingness to work, willingness to put in effort, willingness to try your best. Willingness results in great achievements.
Now, let me return to my point about parents not pressurising their children. Of course, a little pressure is encouraged and would cause the child to work harder, but too much pressure would cause one to tire out and lose interest easily. Different people have different abilities. Not everyone would be able to achieve what someone else achieves. Thus, parents should, as Confucius says, 因材施教, to provide the children with the type and standard of education they need. A little more enrichment would of course benefit the child, but too much might result negatively. It is almost impossible to make a weaker student try to understand the concepts and solutions to math Olympiad and hope they win individual prizes during the competition. Indeed, hard work would pay off and it may be possible, but the amount of effort needed is overwhelming.
Hence, it is more practical to let the child pursue their own interests. This is exactly the purpose of subject combination. As we advance to Secondary 3, we would then be allowed to select the topics that we would like to pursue and study deeper into it. This has allowed for the training of specialists in different areas. As for schools like ITE (Institute of Technical Education), students are generally weaker and are thus given a specific choice of subject to study in further detail. This would equip them with essential skills to survive and have a proper career, and many students from ITE have excelled to become excellent in their professions, such as internationally renowned chefs, artists, musicians, etc.
Another thought that came to my mind when I read this news was that our society has improved. We have become more civilised and united; there is less segregation, division and racism. Although Singapore’s population consists mainly of Chinese, a coloured child like Haikal can still be given equal opportunities to further his education. Equal. I stress on equal. He is not just given opportunities, but is given equal opportunities. There is not a single rule in Singapore that stops a particular race from taking part or enjoying a particular activity. Hence, anyone, regardless of race and religion, would be given equal chances to excel. This results in racial harmony, less prejudice and of course, the development of more talents.
In conclusion, Haikal is a genius, yet as Edison once said, “Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.” I hope that Haikal would continue to work hard and gain glory for Singapore. I also wish that more potential would be discovered to be developed into more talents!
-Ho Jin Yang, Golden Sheep-

Chinese New Year vs Haiti

Chinese New Year is a festive season celebrated by everyone. Walking around the streets in Orchard Road or Chinatown would cause one to be overwhelmed by the strong festive mood. Coloured lights are hung drooping from trees and pictures of the God of Wealth can be seen everywhere. Everyone enjoys the festive season, buying New Year gifts, New Year goodies, New Year clothes, shoes, etc.

Visiting the shopping malls would give you the worst experience of a lifetime. Squeezing through crowds of sweaty, smelly, stinky bodies wet with sweat, with the smell of sweat wafting into your nose, one would definitely feel disgusted. Yet, everyone is more than happy to continue shopping in this “perfect” atmosphere. But why is that so? Because we are Singaporeans.

Which Singaporean would be able to resist the temptation of walking towards a shop which has hung a red banner and on it says “Sale!”? Which Singaporean would be able to resist the idea of being able to buy items at a discounted price? Thus, despite the environment and poor conditions, we Singaporeans would always rush to the nearest sales, as in this case is, the Chinese New Year Sales. Bags, watches, jewellery, shoes are all sold at a discount and we are more than willing to spend large amounts of money to buy the items we want as it is “more worth it”.

This is the scenario commonly spotted during Chinese New Year. Most of us would not have much opinion about it as we are already used to such a chaotic scene. However, we should look at this from another point of view, from a poorer point of view, from a less fortunate point of view, from a less privileged point of view, from the point of view of the Haiti civilians.

As we celebrate the new year, how many of us would constantly be reminded of the pitiful state the Haiti citizens are in? As we prepare for a new start, how many of us are actually reflecting on how we could help those unfortunate citizens? As we usher in the new year and pledge to do more good, how many of us realise that if we had donated all we had spent during the Chinese New Year to the Haiti citizens, what possible state could they be in now?

Of course, I am not discouraging us to break away from past traditions by not buying anything new and festive during the New Year, but I am trying to emphasise on the importance of our willingness to sacrifice. As we enter our large spending spree for the New Year, shouldn’t we consider about how we could sacrifice a little luxury to donate a considerable amount to the Haiti citizens. The amount you donate may not be that significant, but nevertheless, if everyone puts in a little effort on their part, then the effect would be surprisingly great. Never look down upon unity.

Let us put ourselves into the shoes of those victims of the Haiti earthquake. We are stuck on this lonely, desperate, eerie island. Life has been disrupted due to nature’s forces. Yet, the other countries are celebrating new year as though nothing has happened; they are spending big amounts of money for their personal luxury. Have they ever spared a thought for us? Have they ever taken the initiative to spend lesser and donate the rest of the amount to us? A little effort by everyone would amount to a huge contribution!

Indeed, we should always look upon the less privileged, reflect upon our luck and thank God for letting us lead a fortunate life. But that is not sufficient. Being more fortunate, we should not only appreciate it, but also spread some of our care and help to the less privileged. In this way, a win-win situation would be ensured and both parties would benefit; the less fortunate would benefit in terms of the increase in help received while we would benefit as we have just taken another step closer to becoming a civilised society.

Thus, I appeal to all of you, cherish what we have, and spread this warm river of love and care, let it flow around the world, let it flow into our hearts, let it unite all of us, the privileged and the unfortunate…
-Ho Jin Yang, Golden Sheep-

Poem 2

The author I chose was William Woodsworth. He is very intriguing as he believes strongly in nature and is a passionate poet. He loves writing poems as shown in his famous quotes such as "Fill your paper with the breathings of your heart." and "In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts bring sad thoughts to the mind." He is also very philosophical as he believes "Neither evil tongues, rash judgements, nor the sneers of selfish men, nor greetings where no kindness is, nor all the dreary intercourse of daily life, shall e'er prevail against us." And "How does the Meadow flower its bloom unfold? Because the lovely little flower is free down to its root, and in that freedom bold."

After looking through his works, I felt very interested in him as he seems to be a lover of nature. Therefore, I wanted to know more about his background and what had exactly influenced him to become such a nature lover. Also, he has a strong, resolute and independent character as shown in some of his poems. Therefore, I would like to share with you all about his biography and some of his pieces of work.

Firstly, why was he such a resolute character? That was because he hailed the French Revolution with enthusiastic admiration. In addition, he was very devoted to his studies as he felt that “Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive, but to be young was very heaven.” Therefore, he knew that studying was important and studied hard.

Furthermore, in the spring of 1813 he removed from Grasmere to Royal Mount, where he remained for the rest of his life, a period of thirty-seven years. He enjoyed retirement and almost perfect happiness. It was also here when he started to love nature and it was also shown in his lines below.

“Long have I loved what I behold,
The night that calms, the day that cheers;
The common growth of mother-earth
Suffices me--her tears, her mirth,
Her humblest mirth and tears.

The dragon's wing, the magic ring,
I shall not covet for my dower,
If I along that lowly way
With sympathetic heart may stray,
And with a soul of power.”

It was also here when he started writing poems of a higher order, thus greatly extending his circle of admirers.

Now, I shall share with you all some of his poems. The first would be “I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud”. Next up would be “Lines Written In Early Spring” and “Written In March”.

I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud
“I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced, but they
Out-did the sparkling leaves in glee;
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company!
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:

For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.”

This poem describes the scene the author sees when he floats around like a cloud. He felt happy with the company of all the flowers. This poem clearly shows his love of nature as he feels that nature is blissful and comforts him when he is lonely, bored or restless. Metaphors and personification is used, as the author is a cloud and the daffodils can toss their heads.

Lines Written In Early Spring
‘I heard a thousand blended notes,
While in a grove I sate reclined,
In that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts
Bring sad thoughts to the mind.

To her fair works did Nature link
The human soul that through me ran;
And much it grieved my heart to think
What man has made of man.

Through primrose tufts, in that green bower,
The periwinkle trailed its wreaths;
And 'tis my faith that every flower
Enjoys the air it breathes.

The birds around me hopped and played,
Their thoughts I cannot measure:--
But the least motion which they made
It seemed a thrill of pleasure.

The budding twigs spread out their fan,
To catch the breezy air;
And I must think, do all I can,
That there was pleasure there.

If this belief from heaven be sent,
If such be Nature's holy plan,
Have I not reason to lament
What man has made of man?”

In this poem, he constantly praises Nature and admires the power of Nature. This clearly shows his love of Nature and this is what makes him an intriguing person because usually, people do not admire nature to this extent.

Written In March
“The cock is crowing,
The stream is flowing,
The small birds twitter,
The lake doth glitter
The green field sleeps in the sun;
The oldest and youngest
Are at work with the strongest;
The cattle are grazing,
Their heads never raising;
There are forty feeding like one!

Like an army defeated
The snow hath retreated,
And now doth fare ill
On the top of the bare hill;
The plowboy is whooping—anon-anon:
There's joy in the mountains;
There's life in the fountains;
Small clouds are sailing,
Blue sky prevailing;
The rain is over and gone!”

This poem shows even more explicitly Wordsworth love of nature. In fact, every single line is describing Nature. There are cocks, streams, birds, fields, cattle, clouds, sky and the rain, being described in detail such that the reader can actually feel and enjoy the peaceful and soothing atmosphere!

Ok, I think that is enough. Everybody out there, read his poems because they are beautiful pieces of work!!

References: http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/william_wordsworth/poems
http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/wordsworth/section7.rhtml

Poem

Homework: Figurative Language

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

An example of figurative language used is Symbolism. The 2 roads are used to symbolise the paths that we take in real life. It is not just the normal paths that you see on the road but it is the decisions that we make which can decide our future.
"I doubted if I should ever come back." This sentence is also another form of Symbolism as it shows that after we have made decisions in life, it would be very difficult to regret, turn back and try to amend the mistake if we make a bad choice. Therefore, it symbolises that we should be very careful when making decisisions so that we would not regret it in future.
"it was grassy and wanted wear;" This sentence is a form of Personification. The "it" refers to the road and roads are non-living things, thus they cannot want something. Human traits and characteristics were given to the road so that it could "want wear".

And now, on why I liked the poem. Firstly, the poem was less abstract than E.E.Cummings poem such as "Anyone Lived In A Pretty How Town". Thus, it was more easily understood. In addition, it is very meaningful and delivers one important message-we have to be very careful when making decisions in real life as they affect our future so we have to make a good choice. This is because in future, if we regret the decision we made, it would be very difficult for us to try and make another change. However, instead of being so philosophical, the writer, Pobert Frost, presented this message in a more interesting way, by using Symbolism. Personification is also used a little in his poem too. Therefore, I find this poem short and sweet and I encourage others to read and enjoy this poem too!

One more week of hol

Hi, on the way to my 9th post! Well, I believe everyone has met with troubles due to the H1N1 virus?? Like for example, my dad went overseas to work and now that he has returned, he has to be quarantined for a week. Although it is now not compulsory as the Singapore government is not that strict about it, but it is your own responsibility!! He also does not want to pass the virus to us, especially when my sister is having her block tests now! In addition, this virus has caused a lot of problems and has made things diffcult for us as we have to take temperature, wear masks, etc..

However, I believe that the virus also has its advantages. For example, it has resulted in the population of the world becoming more careful of their hygiene and be more alert. In addition, it has taught us the importance of keeping ourselves clean and helping to look out for others. This would help us in future as there would be lesser chances of another major outbreak of diseases. Furthermore, this would help to strengthen the bond between people and make the world a better placce to live in.

Another advantage which I believe that every student would agree with me about is that it has provided us with another one week of holiday. For me, I am very glad as the SMOJ round 2 just passed on Saturday and I was practically mugging for it.. Therefore, by the time school reopened on Monday, I would only have at most 2 more days of holidays!! D: So obviously I was hoping for one more week of holidays.. Then, on the day of SMOJ, Yipin suddenly told me that there was one week of home learning. And I was seriously happy. I immediately went to check SMB and realised that it was true!! Lesson learnt: Check SMB regularly so that you would not die of heart attack.

So, I decided to make good use of my holiday. I am blogging, doing my malay ace which I have yet to do, revise and rest while I can to prepare for the rush when school reopens!! Goold luck to everybody and may everyone do well for the next round of test. Work on your rusty gears guys and get ready your engines and nitrous for the next race!! All ready boys!! NB: But please mind your hygiene. I don;t want to become a swine.. =.=

Flies

Yo everyone.. My 8th post, leaving me with only 2 more to go!! And this post is a horrifying experience that I experienced just last night. Well, it was after the seriously brain-racking SMOJ Round 2, and I went to my aunt's house to relax and have fun! And everything was going on all right, including on my way back home, until I reached the carpark of my house. The minute our car entered the carpark, my sister noted that something was amiss as she saw a bee-looking-like fly flying around the light.

At first, I thought that it was just a random fly, but as our car proceeded to the higher levels of the carpark, we received the greatest shock of our lives. There were lumps of black stuff clinging onto each fluorescent light tube in the carpark!! On closer look, we realised that they were large amounts of flies climbing around. It was seriously gross with the large amount of flies flying around!! As we progressed to higher levels, there were even more!!! Many other cars were also going around, aware of the massive amount of flies, and thinking of ways to evade them. In fact, a man who just left his car and entered the staircase came running back too!! It was seriously freaky!!

After some time, we decided to use our umbrella, but then we thought that it was not such a good idea because my sister said that using an umbrella indoors or when it is not raining will attract the spirits as they usually like to hide under umbrellas. Therefore, it was not such a good idea. Although we never know if it is true or not, but well,, it is never good to defy such stuff as what if it is true? Then you would be courting trouble.

So, what was our solution? We stayed in the carpark until another driver came and drove his car away. Thus, we had a parking lot at a lower level, which reduced the number of flies we encountered.. Lesson learnt? Patience is the key to success!!

Great, so now our problem at the carpark was settled. But, the moment we reached our doorstep, we almost died of shock again. There were tons of dead flies outside our house!! So we had to sweep it up the next day.

So, what are my reflections? I believe that the HDB, and the town council, should constantly check the condition and environment of the HDB flats as these kind of incidents seldom happen in condominiums. Therefore, in order to provide all residents in Singapore woth a wonderful environment to live in, thegovernment should do something about this. Thank you!!

Hotel

Hi everyone!! Blogging my 7th post!! Today, I shall be talking about my holiday trip from 19th to 21st of June!! My family did not plan to go overseas due to the H1N1 virus and the economic crisis which had yet to remove its traces totally. However, my dad had to go overseas to work and could not make it on the days which my sister and I were free. Thus, he booked the hotel for my sister and I to go with my mum. And well, it was on promotion so the price for each night was only 135 dollars!! It was extremely cheap!!! So the lesson learnt is, strike while the iron is hot!! Get what you want during a promotion and you will get the most benefits!!

During the hotel stay, my sister was the one who enjoyed the most!! Well, mot of the time was spent shopping with her and seriously bored me out of my wits.. But well, it was quite a nice experience in the air-conditioned mall and well, I sort of understood my sister's taste now. She prefers simple accessories and not those that are too fanciful. Like me, she is quite thrifty and does not like to spend too much money. In fact, on one or two occasions, she found a necklace she liked too expensive and did not buy it.. I never expected girls to be like this.. Lol... Well, at least I am fortunate to have a thrifty sister..

However, I also did enjoy myself!! I went swimming, cycling, etc.. And I even had the chance to watch the soccer match between Italy and Sweden. I was hoping that Sweden would win, but sadly, they lost 2-1... :(Well, it was still a good experience as I seldom get to watch soccer matches at home.. In addition, I also watched some badminton matches and I must commend China.. Their players are superb!! But, there is a reason why. They have a large population and can thus afford many people focusing on particular areas.. But this is impossible for Singapore because Singapore lacks manpower.. We focus more on technology and other stuff, resulting in our lack of talents in sports..

In addition, I had an interesting experience in the hotel. It was the first time I experienced starting to study at 12.30a.m. I did that for 2 days and slept at 2 a.m. Lesson learnt: Never burn the midnight oil. Because you can never get anything in your head.. So everyone, take my advice!! Never study till late in the night before a test!!

Bye bye, I got to go!! Left with 3 more posts!!

Uncle

It seems as though I have not been updating you guys about my uncle's condition....

Well, at first, which was like 2 months ago, he seemed to be on a steady recovery. However, on this fateful day, his condition relapsed, just that this time it was worse. He was already weak but it made him even weaker. What made matters worse was, his heart and breathng stopped for 10 whole minutes. Twice... Usually, anyone who goes without oxygen for 3 minutes would be brain-dead. But yet, my uncle proved death wrong. He was strong. We thought he would be in a coma forever as he relapsed in 3rd May and only started to wake a little in 6th June. We were afraid that he would just lie in coma for years and then just pass away. But he proved us wrong.

From around 6th to 8th, he was mainly just lazing around and his eyes only opened a teeny-weeny little bit which was still considered coma. But, from the 9th, things became better. His eyes started opening bigger, and now, he seems to understand everything we say. However, he is unable to speak and move, though today, we thought we saw him move his head a little. This showed that his condition has improved.

Therefore, I would like to give my opinion on this matter. I believe that there are 2 reasons why he has pulled through until now. Number 1, a healthy body and number 2, perseverance and determination.

Firstly, this shows how important a healthy body is. My uncle was in the commando course in NS and has always been very fit. Well, he can easily lift me up, turn me around, treat me like a piece of cardboard. He has always been very healthy and seldom falls sick. And why is he healthy??? Because he eats a wide variety of food. This is what I want to focus on. Many children now do not like to eat vegetables, but let me advise you. Veggies are good for health!!! 2 servings of veggies a day, keeps the doctor away!! Besides that, traditional chinese medicine are also good for health. Although they may be a litle bitter at times, but it is still better to eat it as it is for your own good and you would appreciate it in future. You would also be asking your children to take their chinese medicine!! Furthermore, another keyword to good health---EXERCISE!!!

Next, besides good health, perseverance is also one of the mian reasons why my uncle can pull through so many times and fight a strong battle with death. He does not wish to pass away that easy as he believes he still has a lot of stuff uncompleted. Therefore, he has a strong wish to stand up and show others that he is not weak. He also is very determined to stand up and work again! If he did not have such determination, he would most likely not have woken up from his coma!!

Thus, the conclusion is, in order to have a healthy body, lead a good life, eat well, exercise and have determination!!

Finally, may all of you bless my uncle and hope that he will survive through this ordeal! May God bless him. Amen.
(548 words)

Lik Shi's house

Now, right after my MHC(Magical Holiday Camp), everyone was very tired, including me... So we went home to have a good rest as we had to return to the drama club the next day to practise for our upcoming cross talk performance. And it was on this fateful day when something unfortunate happened.

I switched off my phone at night on the last day of the MHC. When i switched it on the next day, I had received a message from my friend who had also helped out in the MHC. Apparently, she had invited us over to her house to relax and have fun after all our hard work at the camp. In the message, it was said that the gathering would be tomorrow in the afternoon and so I planned my time well. However, when it was nearing the end of my drama practice, my friends were discusing about the gathering. This was when I received the greatest shock of my life. The gathering was today!! Immediately, I checked my phone and realised that the message had been sent on the previous day and I did not revceive it cos I had switched off my phone!! Oh my god!! I never expected such a thing to happen. In the end, I could not attend the gathering as I already had activities planned.

As a result, I could not go to her house and my friends later told me thather house was huge and nice. This seriously made me regret my mistake of not checking when the message was sent. Now that I reflect on it, I realise that it was the fault of both parties. For me, the receiver, I should have chacked when the message was sent and if I was not sure, I could have called my friend to confirm. In addition, the sender should have specified the exact date of when the gathering would be held. By doing things this way, such misunderstanding would not occur.

Therefore, through this unpleasant experience, I realised that whatever we do, we must always be very careful or this might result in major losses. Next time when we grow up and enter the business markets, we also have to take note of our time well, because if we miss an important meeting, it may affect the amount of money we earn and may incur great losses for the company. Also, by neing careful, it means that we ve to take note of our time well, and besides that, we also have to let other know the exact date we wish to meet them and not give a vague term such as "tomorrow", etc. If not, the other party may have a bad impression of you.

And all these sums up to a single phrase - BE CAREFUL
(468 words)

Nothing but the truth

Now, I expect that all of you should have read the book Nothing but the Truth as Mdm Lim told us to do so. Now, I would be presenting my views on this book. Apparently, I did not really like this book as it is all represented in dialogue form. Although this may be a literature book, but personally, I do not like the way that the information is presented. I find that by presenting all the information in dialogues makes the book kind of plain and a little boring. Based on the views and opinions that I have obtained from my friends, it appears that the book is not very well-liked. Besides it being plain or boring, having dialogues may result in a lack of good sentences and vocab that can be learnt and used to enhance our english standard.

However, this book also has its good points. Being presented in dialogues makes it easier for the reader to imagine and picture an image of what is going on. In addition, this book teaches us that everything we do has a certain limit. If we are patriotic, we have to be patriotic to a certain limit. Therefore, this book also has its morals. However, I am unsure if this book is an allegory and has a deeper meaning. I hope through Mdm Lim's guidance, I would be able to understand this book better. :D

Now, since we were also given other stories to read, let me comment on them. Firstly, I personally feel that 200 stories is too large a number to cover and whoever can do so and remember every story is a genius.. I will give you 100 rupiah. =.= Anyway, the stories are also quite long and some of them have a long-winded introduction. As a result, I get bored after reading a few. Therefore, I hope that in future, teachers would look at the limitations of students and give their amount of homework accordingly.. :X
(330 words)

SMOJ

Ok, now let me discuss a topic that everyone in 1i3 should be familiar with. It is the SMOJ!! Now, let me do a poll which you guys are not supposed to answer cos I already have some results, who thinks that the SMOJ is extra difficult this year?? And apparently, even Ming En, Yi Pin, etc, all the math geniuses in our class (including me =D) have agreed and came upon this conclusion-This year's paper is extraordinarily difficult. All of us experienced difficulties while doing this paper... Ming En, who usually answers near 30 qns (so pro lah), only did 20 this time!!! However, this paper has been completed and no matter what, we cannot do anything to change our results..

So, instead of crying over spilt milk not spilt by ourselves, let us see if we have learnt anything from this competition.

Firstly, I believe that our mathematics have definitely improved after this "pleasant" and educational experience. Before the competition, I think that everyone should have been practising their math so that they can complete the questions at a faster pace and can tackle more questions. Practice makes perfect and besides that, by having more practice, one will meet more questions and learn different ways of tackling questions. Thus, I believe that everyone is more capable in maths now and have moved one level higher. Three cheers and a pat on the back for those who have done so!! Yeah!!!

Next up, a P, then an E, R, S, E again, V, E again, R, A, N, C, E once again... What does this say? Perseverance!!!! When doing the SMOJ paper, I believe that everyone of us here met with questions that we had no idea how to solve. As a result, we may feel very downcast, afraid that we might just get some lousy score or be so lousy that SMS does not want to present a certificate to you, but guys, if you are going to get distracted by such minor issues during an exam, you are going to be dead!! :X When doing an exam, you should ignore any other form of pressure and persevere. Even if you cannot solve the question, take a deep breath and look at it again. As long as you have tried your best, no one would blame you!! Therefore, perseverance is the keyword to success and I believe it appears in every single school's moral values!!! This further proves its importance!!

In addition, now that we have completed our test, we should not dwell on the kind of result we get. There is no need to be so stressed up on how well we can do and in the end, it results in us not being able to sleep well. This would then cause us to be very tired and not have the ability to do well the next day. Therefore, just try your best in everything you do so that you would feel good after doing the paper cos you know you have done your best. In that case, even if your results are not that good, you can just treat it as an experience. If you really do well. then good for you!!!

So the above are some tips regarding how your mental state should be during an exam. Wish everyone all the best in future!!! :D
(560 words)

Now, let me talk about something still related to chinese drama too!! Well, my drama club has a camp whereby it invites the public to participate to promote chinese. It is called.... The Magical Holiday Camp !!! Well, I decided to help out this year and I should say that it was quite a fun experience.

Firstly, my friend and I are usually the ones who do all the hard labour. We have to carry tables, chairs, plates, utensils, tubs of drinks, fans, and anything you can think of. It is a total of 7 long tbables, 1 small table, 30++ chairs, 30++ plates, 30++ pairs of utensils, 2 tubs of drinks and i air-con-like-fan. Well, it helped to train my muscles as i had to carry the long tables myself at times... =.= Cos my partner likes to emo...However, i realised that planning and oorganisation are both important when helping out as you have to know when to take the items, where to place them. If you position them at a different place everytime, then it would be very messy and difficult if we have to move everything and adjust everything all over again. But, besides carrying these stuff, I also had to go up to the 12th floor and carry pots of steaming hot rice down!! Arghhh!!! Thankfully, Man had invented the lift, but there were still stairs to go... -.-

Soon, my next job arrived. I had to wash over 30 plates.. It was tiring to stand/sit there for like 1 hour plus washing oily plates, utensils, etc, and my hand was experiencing cramps after that. Furthermore, by the time we were done, my skin was all wrinkled. That was still acceptable, but i realised on the next day that the skin on my hand was peeling off!! In large amounts.. But it sort of healed in 2 days time. SO, I believe that we should all thank our parents/maids for washing our plates and treat the cleaners in hawker centres and restaurants with more respect and care cos it is seriously tiring!!! So please appreciate them and not take it for granted !!!!

Another incident which told me how important planning was when we were preparing for lunch on the second day. We suddenly realised that we were out of orange juice!! Immediately, we responded by sending an energency rescue worker to go to the nearby market and buy it!! Thankfully, we bought it in time!! Yeah!!

Finally, I am hoping for CIP hours because this activity used up 30 hours. The activity starts at 8 and ends at 6, 10 hours a day and 30 hours for 3 days!!! But I always forget to ask for CIP hours... T.T

And please come to watch the cross talk performance!! Call 63367318 for further details. The show is called Roaring Good Times 2!!!
(476 words)

Chinese Drama!! ~

Hi everyone, this marks the start of my posting again~ !! Yeah!!
Ok. Anyway, let me tell all of you one disappointing news.. Directly.. We failed. The four of us failed. We failed to do Hwa Chong proud, we failed to impress our teachers, we failed to make a miracle.... We only got FOURTH in the Cross-talk competition!! T.T Don't say I am being emo.. But our teachers did put in a lot of effort and we have to thank them for that, but seriously, FOURTH??? We could have done much better.. So now let me have the honour of analysing the problems we met...

Firstly, the script was not that interesting. Maye it was better than those rambling on about history and the 3 kingdoms, but then our script did not make much sense.. =.= We just started with a cute introduction whereby we play pranks on the first guy who came on stage, spoke a bit and ended up fighting.. We fought for around 4 times. Which I strongly believe that since cross talk is a form of chinese culture and art, it should not have any violence and brutality... Therefore, i think that our script is our first downfall..

Secondly, I think that we did not put in enough effort while practising. When we practised, we were playing sometimes and not being very focused on our task. Therefore, we could not finish our practices on time and left the teacher with little time to point out our mistakes and teach us how to amend them.. Therefore, I think that it would be better if the teacher had been fiercer and scolded us right then. Though we might have hated her, but this concerns the school, not just ourselves.

The following faults are due to the school and the organisation, but please keep this a secret and not spread it to anyone u like.. Only those that I permit... Also, I wll be keeping it short and sweet.

Ok, now for the school. The school did not actually provide us with the professional teacher who was supposed to teach us. Instead, we were provided with another teacher who was in charge of admin! Only during the last 2 days did the professional teacher come and help us. It was only then when we realised that we still had so much problems!!

In addition, the competition was held at the book fair!! T.T I expected it to be in some proper theatre!! So as a result, the sound system was lousy and our sounds could not be heard clesrly. As a result, we had to shout and by the time we finished, our throats were hurting..... :(

Oh, and here i shall provide you with an advertisement. My famous and well-known drama club will be coming up with a cross-talk performance in the start of July!!! Quality is the best and much better than the one I mentioned previously... U will definitely enjoy it!! For details, please contact 63367318 for further details!! :D
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