Never seen the school so dark at night

Hope of a better age

I never talk about my alma mater to any of my friends who are not from my alma mater. Mostly because the conversation usually defaults into that one line that makes everything else we've talked about obsolete:

"Aiya. RJ what."

And I accept that sentiment. Because let's admit it, we are very privileged and in many ways, very different from other schools.

But I loved my school. Though I find it wildly inaccurate whenever people say that times were simpler in JC. I completely disagree. I think it only seems simpler because we've had the benefit of hindsight and the wisdom that comes from experience.

But JC for me was not 'simple'. When it wasn't about defeating low self-esteem, it was about managing expectations, and coping with disappointment, stress, limits. It was about understanding failure, learning respect, grasping humility. Many times it was learning not just how to love, but how love worked - that's a whole department of complicated networks in itself.

And I've hurt people, more than I've been hurt. I've learnt more, more than I've been taught, and I've taken much more than I've given. These things didn't just happen. They fell into place via a series of decisions and carefully-placed steps. So nothing's simple.

But I'm not complaining. I hope it doesn't seem like I am. I just feel a little sorry that I wasn't sensible enough to realise how fortunate I was at the time.
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