It has been 4 years since I gave up my ‘student’ title and moved on to being a real full-time member of the working society. The 4 years has indeed been full of ups and downs. I’ve been an unpaid laborer, gone through an unofficial promotion, moved cubicles, had my own room, killed a few printers, and almost killed a few people (including myself). And as for the ups… well, I survived!
And it was during a session of games-and-talks till 8 am in the morning this past holiday that I came upon a huge realization: that being a Cedarian had played a major role in shaping me into who I am today.
Looking back at those years, I was too busy complaining about the stupid uniform, stupid prefects, stupid principal, stupid fitness test, stupid jogging session, stupid home econ class, stupid swimming class, stupid aikido class, stupid etiquette class, stupid homework, stupid exams and I just can’t wait to get out of there.
But now, 8 years later, I suddenly realized that I missed my alma mater dearly. Those 4 years in Cedar has been one of the best times in my life. The blue and grey uniform stood out from the crowd and gave us a sense of identity. We’ve learnt how to tie a tie long before other girls or even boys knew how to. Those morning jogging sessions, kept me healthy during those years, and even now. Perhaps that’s one of the reasons I still loved jogging. Not to mention the cheering as we jogged, the sheer motivation it gave us. The compulsory reading session before assembly, the swimming classes, aikido classes, even etiquette classes were there to groom us into an all-rounded individual. Our school motto is like a mantra that I’ll never forget: Honesty, Courtesy, and Perseverance. We lived and breathe by it then, and even after Cedar, I’ve lived my life strictly adhering to that motto. And how can I forget the annual trips to the national stadium. We take pride in the Cedar Band, and our Track and Field team. I can never forget the entire school cheering on ‘Unite’ as Pearl Chua dashed across the 100-meter track in seconds. My two hands will be red and painful from the clapping, my voice is hoarse after all the screaming, the tears streaming when we win or lose, but none of that matters when the sea of blue stood up singing our school anthem, supporting the yellow shirts down in the track, our school flags waving gloriously. We know that we’re united. And we know that no matter what happened we’ll always come back and we’ll come back stronger. That’s because we’re Cedarians.
I’m proud to say that Cedar will probably never be the top academic school ever. That’s not because Cedarians are not up to it, but because we Cedarians know that there are other things in life worth living and fighting for. We know how to have fun, we know how to be funny, we know how to be a team-player, we know how to stretch the limit, we know how to screw things up, but we know when to pull up our socks and get serious too.
I’ve never realized it, but it’s now clear that the memories of Cedar and the Cedarian spirit has and will always live in me.
4 years in Cedar has equipped me with the education, skills, mentality and attitude to go out there and be the best possible person I can be. And now, with a little bit more experiences on hand, I’m hoping that I can, once again, take on another step in life.
Happy 50 years anniversary, Cedar!
