Keep The Fire Burning

Photo of my batch in Form 3.

Initiation of new recruits during the Tenderfoot Camp this year.

A couple of days ago,my class received the results of the mid term English examination.As I was browsing through some of my friends' Paper 1s,I chanced upon an essay by the troop leader of my school's scouts movement Tay Chia Chang. For his Section B,he chose to write on what he would miss most after he leaves school and that would be scouting.Though his essay wasn't much to shout about in terms of grammar and vocab,I definitely felt his spirit and love for scouts.As a fellow member of this co-curricular unit,I understood his pangs of loss.Scouting has left a big mark on my life,both emotionally and physically.The friends and experience gained cannot be reproduced anywhere else.Scouting was where I felt I belonged.The jokes exchanged while carrying out activities,the injuries proudly shown off as 'battle scars',the sense of accomplishment after earning a badge;all these moments are priceless.Sure,scouting may be hard on the mind and body in the first few years,but the rewards received cannot be arguesd with.I admit,I was not much of a sociable person in Forms 1 and 2,prefering instead to do everything on my own and having few close friends.However the many meetings held and the numerous camps attended changed all of that.I found something in common with total opposites of who I am.We worked together,we laughed together,we...ahem...slept together.My confidence and self esteem grew,and so did my circle of friends.In fact,I would dare say that scouting set my mind on becoming a journalist in the future.Besides that,I noticed that my body changed as well.Before,I had really fair skin and got tired too easily.So much so,coupled with my inability to like any girls,made me the poof among the boys.Even my dad got into the act,insulting my manliness every chance he got.A few months of scouting later,and all my doubters learned to shut up(not my bloody dad though). Clearly,scouting has helped me in so many ways.This will definitely be something I would miss when I leave school and enter the scary realms of adulthood.Everything I've gained from scouts will never be forgotten and will be applied into almost every aspect of my daily life.Thank god there are mobile phones,MSN and Facebook to keep in touch with when everyone's gone off to study their field of choice and make new friends.Till then,I have to appreciate and make every moment spent scouting count.