First and foremost, I think an apology is necessary - I've been absent from this space for way too long. To be honest, I can't believe that I did not blog for the entire month of May - so much has happened and I somehow wished I put all these memories into words.
May has been a crazy crazy month for myself and probably for most people around me. We had projects, tests, Open House, IHG season, House Practices, and to end everything, we had Sports Fest. Of course, I will not be talking about everything that has happened but more of the events that mean the most to me.
Truth be told, exams for me this semester were, simply put, terrible for me. No lie, I fared the worst I have ever did in my four years in this school (and trust me, I haven't been doing very well to start with) but somehow I don't really feel pained / that upset about it. Even though the results that will be on my report card will be less-than-stellar, I somehow feel like I have experienced so much in my secondary school life, so much more than what a typical 16-year-old might have gone through and I am very very thankful for that. I'm not trying to come up with reasons/ excuses for my academic performance but really, I am very happy that my secondary school life has been so fulfilling, though at times suffocating. The things I learnt through my leadership journey here is going to last a lifetime, much longer than what I cramped for a recent pen and paper assessment.
What exactly then, has made my secondary school life so amazing? House.
The past few weeks have been filled with House, House and more House - I went for practically all the IHGs and Week 10 was just amazing with the last House Practice and Sports Fest ever.
To many, House or more specifically, Waddle, might be nothing to them over the course of these four years in RGS. Their closest memories of it might just be House Practices in Year One and that's it. A lot of people are not able to understand why I love House so much; it is not just about leading it - even before I got the position as House Captain, it is the only thing I look forward to and the only thing I live for in this school, and this feeling just got even stronger with the position because apart from passion, responsibility came tied to this overwhelming feeling. It's difficult to describe this and some people just fail to understand why some of us feel this way but it's just the way it is so thank you House and thank you Waddle (':
Week 10 has been insane, with Wednesday of that week being the last House Practice of the year. For me and my other Year Four batchmates, it's the last House Practice ever. After four years of this, from coming back on Saturdays when we were Year One, coming back on Saturdays when we were in Year Two as new House Commers and later having to adapt to Wednesday House Practices as a vice captain in Year Three and finally coming to House Practices as the Captain - there is definitely a weird sensation thinking about how that was the final House Practice. And to me, it was the best one ever. So thank you so very much Year Ones (':
I am so incredibly fortunate to be able to serve my term as Captain by leading the most amazing bunch of Year One Waddlians ever. Really, in my four years of House Practices, I think it is safe to say that this year's Year Ones are the best ones ever. To be honest, I'm not sure why they are so passionate for Waddle and I'm pretty sure it's not exactly my doing but I'm really really glad they are because it has made my life so much easier and so much happier.
For the final House Practice, we had mass dance that day (which Waddle was praised a lot by the Dance teachers) and I was so incredibly proud of the Year One Waddlians and my Mass Dance Captains. Both groups have put in so much effort into the stunning performance that was performed during Sports Fest. So thank you (': But the highlight of the House Practice was really the Individual House Party.
We had music, food and great company and everyone just went crazy (': The energy was so infectious and everyone was really bouncing around and having the time of their lives (at least I was)
Oh and never would I have expected that the Year Ones would buy us cakes but they did which really really touched my heart. I don't think that in my 4 years as a House Comm member, I have ever felt so appreciated before. I think I'm just so so so lucky to be able to have this batch of Year Ones (':
Thank you so much for the cards & the notes - I really really appreciate it and you guys don't know how much you've made my day. I know that I'm not the most affectionate House Captain and I don't tend to show my emotions that much nor know how to express myself in the most coherent manner sometimes. In fact, I'm really quite an introvert which explains why I find it difficult to speak impromptu front of large crowds, resulting in much shorter "speeches". Somehow, you guys don't seem to mind and continue to do so much for Waddle, and so much for me (':
I know that I'm super impersonal in the sense that I don't know a lot of you personally but it's really not because I want to keep a distance or anything like that - I just find it very difficult to approach people and make friends on a more personal level. But thank you all for accepting me and really just welcoming me and showering me with so much more love than I would ever deserve (':
After Individual House Party (cue awwwwwwwwwwwww), we headed to the hall for a final round up with all the other Houses and it was so amazing. Angelia made this tear jerking video and we screened it and I just felt so warm and cuddly watching it together with Channel 5.
And I love The Duck Side (': Amazing group of people I am so fortunate to have been given the opportunity to lead.
Now, now, if you think that's the end of my post, well you're not correct (; There's still Sports Fest! :D
Sports Fest happened last Friday, on the last day of "school" before term ended and it was quite an emotional rollercoaster ride for me. Even before Sports Fest, there was so much talk about how Waddle wasn't doing very well because of the supposed "results" released on inet. I think many people misinterpreted it as our current standings at IHGs, which made me really upset because in actual fact, Waddle has done really well for IHGs and they should be proud and happy for their fellow Waddlians who did so well for the competitions but instead many of them were quite unhappy that we were not doing well.
Indeed, we weren't doing very well in the track events (the running ones) and that's something that I had to accept - Waddle was never really good at those - although I really really appreciate the Waddle runners for agreeing to sign up and run for our House. However, I was a bit apprehensive and worried that the Waddlians might feel extremely discouraged on Sports Fest itself mainly because most of the time it was circled around the sporting events and if we didn't do that well, they might feel demoralized which could take at toll on the overall spirit present. But, that wasn't something I'm able to control myself so I just let things run naturally (-:
The weather was insanely hot that day but I don't think it really affected the spirits of the Waddlians which I was super happy about. The day started with the Year Ones putting up a brilliant mass dance performance (': Incredibly proud of them.
And yes, Waddle, is of course, the only House that decorated our stands at the stadium. Yet again (we are the coolest lot) I personally feel that this is a tradition that we should really continue for a long, long time to come.
After mass dance, we commenced with the sporting events and it was a mad rush from then on. Rushing to scan attendance, rushing to give out souvenirs, rushing from this place to that place, leading in cheers, getting a bit unhappy with people who didn't cheer (but controlling myself because I knew that everyone was tired, and everyone was uncomfortable under the heat) - it was madness, simply put. At the same time though, it was fun and it felt amazing to see that there were people who actually cared about House, who cared to cheer and give it their all.
I'm really sorry Waddlians if I appeared pushy, trying to get you guys to participate in the Sports Fest Challenge but it's a really crucial part of Sports Fest and it's really where everyone is able to play a part in the event itself.
Then, there were more light hearted events such as the Teachers' Race which Waddle came in second - our principal, and my form teacher, gamely ran for Waddle (': I was incredibly overwhelmed at how sporting they were.
There's of course, the annual musical chairs as well -
And most importantly, Cheerleading.
To me, cheerleading was probably the most important part of Sports Fest that I was looking forward to because I knew how much the cheerleaders were training (from all Houses) and I was so excited to watch the performances.
After the Waddle Cheerleaders performed their routine, I was utterly impressed. Their routine this year was really amazing and it tied in so well with our theme this year, Wonder Waddle. To be honest, I knew that we would probably get 1st or 2nd placing but I knew that if we didn't get champions, it would be my fault because the cheering component would be the one that pulled us down and that would have nothing to do with the cheerleaders. Indeed, Waddle did the most number of cheers during the entire Sports Fest duration but during their cheer routine itself, our cheering was less-than enthusiastic and because of the confusion of being on the track, it resulted in many not cheering.
However, when they announced that Waddle was awarded cheerleading champions, I immediately starting crying quite badly because for one, I was relieved. I knew the cheerleaders deserved it and I'm so glad that I didn't pull their performance down. Here's their winning routine:
To be honest, there has been quite a bit of controversy regarding the Cheerleading results but in my honest opinion, the Waddle cheerleaders deserve every bit of their Championship title. Yes, every cheerleader from every house has worked so hard and I'm really proud of every single one of them but from an objective viewpoint, here is why I enjoyed Waddle's performance so much (not comparing to any House - really, I loved every one of them)
I truly admire the cheerleading captain, Claudia - she has be liaising with me with regards to this performance for the longest time, ever since I got the position of House Captain last year because we both knew that the theme for the year was mainly for the banner and the cheerleading routine and we had to make sure that what we picked was feasible for both. It was only with the cheerleaders' and House Comm's consent that the theme Wonder Waddle was eventually picked. Wonder Waddle is an action packed theme, which meant that the cheerleaders could really take advantage of such a theme for an amazing dance routine, which they did.
Really, I'd really like to thank the Waddle cheerleaders for their dedication to Waddle and what they do for it - they started practices the earliest and they submitted their song choices the earliest as well. It was true determination and consistent effort on their part - I'm truly blown away by their commitment. Also, we were probably the only House who did the cheer part based on the theme cheer (we are the only House that does this every year), which I admit is not the best cheer for dancing but the cheerleaders managed to pull it off so brilliantly.
I'm not trying to justify our win here because I know that the Waddle cheerleaders did indeed deserve it but I would just like to point out that there are many things being taken into account for during the judging process and I sincerely hope that no one would start bashing another House down again, for any other IHGs or perhaps the upcoming Swimming Carnival. It is rather unpleasant and unbecoming if House becomes a place where everyone gets super competitive and nasty towards one another and start making false assumptions and whatnot. Thank you Waddle for cheering your hearts out and thank you cheerleaders for dancing your hearts out (': It was amazing, really.
After Sports Fest, we went for food yayzerz and it was good (-:
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