In Continuum.

Unto Infinity

Shivering, I tried to keep my cool on the bus. But the rain outside the bus sure wasn't helping much with the decreasing temperature within. I couldn't talk straight, and throughout the journey, all that came out of my mouth were my trembling words. But I guess she didn't mind, or was she too excited to see me? We talked about the school, and how it was when I was still there and how it is now. And from her words I discovered something that a lot of my friends will find disagreeable, even appalling. At least those were the words that went through my head at that time, but was too polite to argue or curse. Because really, no legacies deserve an abrupt end such as this, especially when one involved such great memories and fun.

Friends of mine should know that, if I have to pick a period of my education life that I disliked the most, it would have been the Junior College life that I endured. Like I said a dozen times before, the tests and the exams, the way the school functioned just wasn't a lifestyle that suited my tea. It was like an abstract painting that didn't fit the ideal living room that I had in mind. And thus, that period of time was pulled through and survived with much dread and much hardship.

However, no apples are completely rotten. As the saying goes," Even the most worthless man can be worthy of a good example of a worthless man". The Guitar Club, or NYGC as we so conveniently called ourselves, was such a thing. To me, the times spent in the late afternoons carrying heavy guitar cases up and down the school building, and practicing for numerous concerts were interesting indeed. It was the sense of belonging when I felt the least welcomed, the way music and art defined everything in the classroom we used to practice. Nothing else mattered, not the grades or the tutorials, not the examinations or the teachers. Just music and the guitars, that's it.

Life was simple in those classrooms, playing guitar and skimming our eyes over the scores and the notes. I never knew how to read the notes, but being a guitarist for a period of time then, it was a benefit over others. Of course, there were better players around, but we all mingled and interacted, and that this is where I made some of my best friends in life. Connected through music, lasting through friendship. Those late afternoon practices were a whole lot of fun indeed.

So, the announcement. If any of you are reading this - which I doubt - the Guitar Club is no more. By 'no more', I mean that it no longer exists in our school system. It isn't a CCA anymore, and it is no longer a performing art in NYJC. The legacy that we tried to uphold, the story that we left to the youngsters, ended with a command from the new principal. Guitar Club is over my dear friends, over and done with. We are now part of the history along with the guitars, and never a NYJC-ian from this day on will call themselves a NYGC member.

There, I have said it, to the dismay of many I am sure. But then again, it's not like any of them reads my blog anyway. I heard Bernard Wong was disappointed with the eradication of the CCA, since he was the teacher in charge for so long and was enthusiastic about it. His dedication was unsurpassed, and was always there one way or another to support us. We weren't the best CCA in school, not the best in the country or the world. We did not travel overseas and win awards, nor did we make our name in any international list as one of the best. But nobody cared, and nobody cares now. In our hearts, those were the times when we truly enjoyed ourselves, when we were truly immersed in something we knew that meant something to us.

I appreciate the times that I have spent with you guys, the great guitarists of my life. Practicing and preparing for Synergy was especially fun for me indeed, and who can forget the supper afterwards? The chalet days before my enlistment was memorable to the extend that, it became a sort of milestone in my life. That was the end of my school life - not prom - and that was the beginning of everything else. Trying to catch the sunrise around the corner of the beach, running around at midnight and throwing sparklers into the sky and the tree, that was a fun night indeed. We should have that more often guys, to honor the club. The club that reached it's abrupt end.

Rummaging through my stake of old letters and cards, a pile of them fell from the shelf and onto the floor. Some of them were wholly forgotten by myself, and dismissed into the corner of my drawer for the past years, only to be discovered all over again at chance. I felt utter guilt then for not taking more care of such precious memories, but the fact was I found them, and they are here to stay for good. Most part of them were from my friends at the club, and XinYu dominated the sender's chart.

I remember the bag of instant noodles, cereals and other food that she brought for me on a rainy Sunday morning, along with a card to cheer me on through the hard times. That was totally unexpected for me, and this is the kind of friend I am talking about. The ones that injects warmth into your heart on the coldest days, and these are the kind of friends I made. To hell with the awards and fuck the principal who fired the instructor. We don't care about national or international awards, or if our performances were merely restricted to the library and Bugis Junction when performing arts groups from other schools were flying overseas to compete. We were happy, and that's all that mattered. I was, and fuck everything else.

All good things must come to an end they say, and the end it is. But at least we left with much pride in our hearts as well as joy. Memories that I shall keep with me till the very end of my own life. At least at the abrupt end of mine, the life that I led in the past shall have it's own beginning unto infinity.

Embarrassing photos time: