So for the sake of some quick updates, I've been having about a month of bumming. I had officially graduated after 4 years, which now felt very much like 4 months instead when I look back. It's amazing how time flies. I'll talk more about school as I intend to dedicate a blog entry for this particular milestone since school has been a significant part of my life and it deserves a proper closure in writing. I spent about 3 months doing an internship soon after and ever since it ended, I've been clinging to my 4 weeks of freedom very dearly before the start of my first official job.
While I planned my last few days, the first realization I had was the very fact that I had almost no memory of the last time I could spend my days freely and doing whatever I wanted to. The last was probably the period of time after the A's, but most of it was spent doing a part-time job. This week has been refreshing. For one, I notice how beautiful the afternoons are. While the majority of the world goes to work or school, I have been basking myself in the freedom of being able to spend my afternoons gravitating towards the things I've been wanting to do (eating and socializing for most part!). It's definitely much quieter and this somehow facilitates more observation of the surroundings than the observations made on an average day in a crowded school, or the journey to and back from work, or during the weekends.
There's really something beautiful and majestic about the morning sun. Apart from the fact that the the vitamin D from the morning rays is really good for the skin, I notice how nice it is to feel the warmth while the air is still cool in the morning. Mornings are the best time to plop on the grass and actually literally feel the day starting; the earth is rotating and a good minute should be dedicated to appreciate the gift of another day. The air is fresh and crisp and you feel renewed and light because there isn't any fixed agenda for the day. I see aunties and housewives gathering under the block chattering away, I see mothers and maids clutching the hands of the young children, getting ready to go to school, and I see grandmothers gathering at the shared neighbourhood garden, and well, God knows what they were doing. I hopped on the train and I didn't even need to be all kiasu just to get a seat. The train wasn't cluttered with people and as natural as it could get, I reached for my book inside my bag and had an uninterrupted reading time, completely engrossed. When was the last time we could actually read a book on the train without having anyone peering over our shoulders or to even maintain a comfortable reading distance without hitting someone? I've always thought reading books in metros or trains is very picturesque. It feels as if you're really on a vacation, all drawn into the world in which you're reading, while the train brings you to your destination. And walking through the streets when they are relatively un-crowded is blissful; you feel you can really breathe unlike during the weekends where you see anthills after anthills. You get to stop and really stare, and to be consciously aware what you're actually walking on and what you're passing by. I was once walking through a neighbourhood area which is adorned with beautiful flowers and garden and a lake, and taking it all in.
Before working life starts, I've been giving myself reminders of this phenomenon we are all very familiar with; that the grass is always greener on the other side. We are always searching for the greener pastures. I often hear seniors telling me to appreciate school because those are the days I will soon miss once I start working. But I only remember being overly enthusiastic about having a stable job during my final year of school and wanting to get school over and done with. So now that I'm in between, I'm taking the time to fully embrace what life is like before filling it in with anything else. It used to be school, and very soon, it will be work. Really, we are so caught up with moving from one phase to another, we need to seize this transition phase, and appreciate life as it is, as it has always been, as it should be. I am hoping that once I'm in the rat race with everyone else, I can look back upon this period and remember how it's like to feel light and free.
While I planned my last few days, the first realization I had was the very fact that I had almost no memory of the last time I could spend my days freely and doing whatever I wanted to. The last was probably the period of time after the A's, but most of it was spent doing a part-time job. This week has been refreshing. For one, I notice how beautiful the afternoons are. While the majority of the world goes to work or school, I have been basking myself in the freedom of being able to spend my afternoons gravitating towards the things I've been wanting to do (eating and socializing for most part!). It's definitely much quieter and this somehow facilitates more observation of the surroundings than the observations made on an average day in a crowded school, or the journey to and back from work, or during the weekends.
There's really something beautiful and majestic about the morning sun. Apart from the fact that the the vitamin D from the morning rays is really good for the skin, I notice how nice it is to feel the warmth while the air is still cool in the morning. Mornings are the best time to plop on the grass and actually literally feel the day starting; the earth is rotating and a good minute should be dedicated to appreciate the gift of another day. The air is fresh and crisp and you feel renewed and light because there isn't any fixed agenda for the day. I see aunties and housewives gathering under the block chattering away, I see mothers and maids clutching the hands of the young children, getting ready to go to school, and I see grandmothers gathering at the shared neighbourhood garden, and well, God knows what they were doing. I hopped on the train and I didn't even need to be all kiasu just to get a seat. The train wasn't cluttered with people and as natural as it could get, I reached for my book inside my bag and had an uninterrupted reading time, completely engrossed. When was the last time we could actually read a book on the train without having anyone peering over our shoulders or to even maintain a comfortable reading distance without hitting someone? I've always thought reading books in metros or trains is very picturesque. It feels as if you're really on a vacation, all drawn into the world in which you're reading, while the train brings you to your destination. And walking through the streets when they are relatively un-crowded is blissful; you feel you can really breathe unlike during the weekends where you see anthills after anthills. You get to stop and really stare, and to be consciously aware what you're actually walking on and what you're passing by. I was once walking through a neighbourhood area which is adorned with beautiful flowers and garden and a lake, and taking it all in.
Before working life starts, I've been giving myself reminders of this phenomenon we are all very familiar with; that the grass is always greener on the other side. We are always searching for the greener pastures. I often hear seniors telling me to appreciate school because those are the days I will soon miss once I start working. But I only remember being overly enthusiastic about having a stable job during my final year of school and wanting to get school over and done with. So now that I'm in between, I'm taking the time to fully embrace what life is like before filling it in with anything else. It used to be school, and very soon, it will be work. Really, we are so caught up with moving from one phase to another, we need to seize this transition phase, and appreciate life as it is, as it has always been, as it should be. I am hoping that once I'm in the rat race with everyone else, I can look back upon this period and remember how it's like to feel light and free.
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