First Day of School

Nope, school didn't start for me today. But it did for those in primary, secondary and JCs.

Walking around, I saw numerous students all dressed in their new uniforms. You could tell they were wearing them for the first time cos there weren't any stains or signs of wear. And the colours all looked bright and fresh.

Seeing them brought back a rush of memories of my first days at school.

I remember my first day in Primary One. I was in the morning session and had to wake up at the crack of dawn. Something I had never done much before. There was a feeling of excitement in me as I walked down the stairs of my house (I used to live in those two storey HDB flats).

I remember sliding my socks down the handrail. I was all dressed up in my new uniform and ready to enter a new phase of my life. Sadly, that's about all I can recall from my first day in primary school.

The first day of Secondary One didn't leave much of an impression on me. But the first few days sure did. The orientation camp was something which has been stuck in my mind for a long time to come.

It wasn't exactly my first camp, but it was the first time I was part of such a massive one. Pitching tents, cooking, games, orienteering... Fun stuff. And it was also the first time I took a shower with a fire hose! Its actually quite embarassing so let's just leave it as that.

Day one of JC One, like secondary school, didn't really leave me much to remember it by. But the one major difference was the presence of girls. For someone who spent the last 10 years in an all-boys school, sitting beside a girl in class felt like the weirdest thing.

Should I sit up straight? Should I slouch? Can I scratch my butt? Gosh, my butt sure feels itchy... Damn it... Why did I have to go think about my butt? Oh man, now I've really gotta scratch. Maybe if I do it discreetly, no one will notice...

Those were just some of the things I had to deal with being thrown in this new foreign environment. But my guess is, I'm probably not alone. :)

The common thing I noticed about all these first day experiences was the feeling of excitement tinged with a little hesitation.

The excitement of beginning a new experience, the excitment of a change in environment. But with the hesitation of leaving the old comfort zones behind.

I guess very soon I would be going through another first day experience as I leave my student days behind. I am really looking forward to this new phase in life, and I'm filled with anticipation of what it might bring.

But as with the first day experiences in school, there would definitely be a hint of trepidation. Apprehension at starting out in a foreign environment and just the general feeling of uneasiness that comes with being in a situation out of the norm.

That said, I guess there really isn't much I can do. Life continues to flow regardless of whether you want it to or not. The best option is probably to go along for the ride and make sure I have more fond first day memories.