Knocked out

Even though the event have passed like two weeks ago, it is only now that I start to write about it. After that event, I do not know why but I feel more determined than ever. That feeling inside me is difficult to describe. I don't know why I feel this way but I know I want to train, to become better...

A few weeks ago, it was a very sad day that day. My school's tennis team was knocked out.I was one of the team members though I did not play. The team was unable to advanced to the nationals.The team that stood in our way was ACSI( Anglo-Chinese School(independent))Their team was too strong. Even their reserves could be seed-players. Their team seem unbeatable. Our team needed one more win to advanced to the nationals. However, our dreams were short-lived. The opponent was just too good. No matter how we play, we just cannot beat them. Failure was inevitable. We were utterly trashed 4-1. Luckily we manage to savage one point we had to win by 9-8. It was a difficult match but at least bringing back some dignity to my school. The opponent for that game was a boy much shorter than my teammate, but he was very good. He was a reserve yet he could almost beat us for that point. Our team seemed weak compared to their team. Seeing my seniors being thrashed 9-1 or 9-2, I was very disappointed. Yet... I was determined. I want to train harder. I wanted to become better.I do not want to lose, I want to win.This failure have motivated me.

Failure in life is inevitable. In life there is always a person better than you.When you meet with a failure, do not be discouraged. Everyone fails from time to time. Failure is the mother of all success. It is because of failure that push people to their limits and out of their comfort zone to strive to become better.You will never succeed if you feel discourage and give up hope. To fail is human. But if you are able to learn from failure and persist, success will be within reach.Many people are not able reach their objective because they lack determination. When they fail, they feel that all hope is lost and success can never be reach. That is their mentality.The people that had succeeded had tried umpteen times before they actually succeed. They do not give up after they fail once. Like Alexander Bell, the creator of the telephone, he had to experiment thousands of times to get the result which is the modern day telephone. It took many years to succeed. He met with failure like thousands of times, yet he did not give up.He learned from each failure and improve on the telephone. A failure is not just a failure.He felt that a failure is a way not to do something and he gained from it Why was he able to succeed? Because he was determined. Without failure, people will not be able to learn from them and succeed, bringing the progress of the earth to stop.

Though my team and I failed this time, I know we can win the next time. We must learn from our failure and persist towards our goals. It is because of failure that bring out the determination in us making us succeed. Now, I am training very hard to improve on my skills. I am pushing my self to the limit because I know I can become as good as the other team. Now I am anxiously waiting for the competition next year. Wish me luck!

The Little Water Puddle

A few days ago, something happened in my classroom. Somebody had knocked down a water bottle. Water spilled from the bottle and onto the floor. It so happens to fall onto the front of the door.A puddle was formed. Nobody tried to cleaned it up. Only the culprit tried to clean it up. He did not do a good job. He only put a few rags to dry the puddle, to no avail rather, yet nobody bother to see it as a problem. People were still chatting heartily with one another, while others were playing with their hand phones. They seem to be oblivious to the water puddle.

It was when the teacher came in, then came the "wake- up slap". It was obvious that she was not happy at all. First came the stern face, then came an awkward silence. There was much tension in the air. When she finally spoke, she did it in a quiet and not screaming tone. She reprimanded us that we should have cleaned the puddle up. Why didn't we take the initiative to clean it up. Leaving the puddle will cause many problems like people slipping and dirtying the classroom . She said that it is because we felt that it was not our problem so we did not help to clean it up.It was only then 3 pupils came out to clean the puddle. It was obvious that my teacher was very disappointed that we still did not learn our lesson. We just stood there like a statue, waiting for the puddle to be clean up. The teacher only resumed the lesson after the water puddle was cleaned up by the 3 pupils. Self-centred we stand, selfish we sat.

I am ashamed of myself. I did not help to clean the puddle. I should have done it, but why didn't I. It was the right thing to do, but yet... I was selfish,i must confess. Standing there not helping is selfish and self-centred. I thought people would clean it up or at least the water will dry up. I was wrong to think that it was not my problem as other people had spilled it so they are the ones that should clean. I remembered that i saw the water puddle but i just walked across it.Even though it was not my fault, i know I was partly responsible for getting scolded by my teacher. We, as a class, must be active to help one another. When the 3 pupils were cleaning. I wanted to help, but I did not have the courage. After being reprimanded, i was so ashamed of myself. I did not dare to look the teacher in the eye and just kept looking down.My face became a bit warm, yet... I still did not help.The teacher had given us a chance to repent , sadly we did not seize the opportunity. Embarrassed had overwhelmed me at that instance. It was what i felt at that moment and i am terribly regretful that I took no action. I am not proud of what I have done.

This small water puddle incident had inspired me to become more considerate and helpful.This mistake may seem small yet it has a large influence on me. We must learn from mistakes as it is only through mistakes that we learn and mature. We help people is not because it help us or it concerns us, we help others because it is the right thing to do. I had made a mistake and I want to change, to change to become a better person.Many small incidents in our lives actually teach us life lessons that are very important, though many are ignored. This time, I have gained much from the little water puddle.

A report on a leader from the past

This is an assignment.

There are many important leaders in history. However, not all of them are great leaders. My definition of a great leader need not mean he or she is a high in morals. A great leader is a person that is powerful in a sense that he or she could influence the people able lead to his or her people. Adolf Hitler is one of them. Though he was evil and cruel, it is no doubt that he can lead his people, making him a great leader.

Adolf Hitler (20 April 1889 – 30 April 1945) was an Austrian-born German politician and the leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party ,popularly known as the Nazi Party. He was the ruler of Germany from 1933 to 1945. He maybe the one that start World War 2

Adoff Hitler is a notorious villain in history. People hate and despise him for his atrocious acts during the World War 2 until today. Many innocent lives were killed because of his goal.He left his name in history is a bad way.Although he is dead and defeated, this man is frightening. People still fear at the first mention of his name. He is cruel and heartless but he possesses traits of a good leader.

Hitler had amazing oratorical skills. He was able to convince the crowd. Hitler could brainwash them by speaking to them. It was not a machine that could brainwash them into thinking his way. A machine could never had done that. He had the power of speech. This is a very important skill great leaders must possesses. Hitler was able to convince the almost whole nation to support him in the quest to regain their pride which they lost when they lost World War 1. Many people were willing to die for the country because Hitler influenced them to do so. The people's mindset was to support Hitler in the war. Speech is a necessary life skill to get your way.That is why Hitler was so formidable. People's morale were boost hearing his speeches and therefore making the soldiers high on morale too, which made the German army powerful when at war. It is unbelievable that one man could influenced the nation.

Hitler also was very determined to conquer other countries. Determination is the key to victory. This is what many people lack. It is because of that that they will never succeed. Hitler had to make much preparation for the war. At that time , Germany's economy was crippling due to the after effects of World War 1. He had to boost the economy in a very short time if he wanted to attack other countries. As many countries are still recovering from the previous war, it will be to the Germans advantage if they could attack first.Hitler had to violate the Treaty of Versailles, which limited the German army to 100,000 men. Hitler embarked on a rearmament program of massive scale: fighter planes, tanks, submarines. This in turn create much more jobs for the people and therefore led to a significant boost in the economy. He had to brainwash the people to think that he is right to prepare for a another war ( see the previous paragraph for more details). He had to make not once or twice but countless speeches to get the majority of the people to be influenced by him. It consumes much time to do that but that was one of the important reason why he was successful in the early part of World War 2. Hitler was playing a gamble.Actually he was playing against the odds. To conquer Europe, he had to conquer the superpower countries of Europe. They are the United Kingdom and the French empire, not to mention the Americans that had increasingly became a threat to the Germans. Germany had Italy,Japan on her side and other smaller countries. ( The Soviets helped Germany in the first part of the war but later when Germany attacked Russia, they fought back). But he was not discouraged. He was determined and confident to win the war. He persevered in conquering the countries that fell. No matter how the great the resistance, he and his army persevered to advance. This evident that Hitler was a determined person.

However, Hitler was very evil and cruel. He hated Jews and felt it was a need to get rid of them as they were very smart. Hitler was afraid that they may form a rebellion. That was when the holocaust was planned. Many people were killed in gas chambers, concentrated camps. About six million Jews lost their lives in these camps. Children with physical disabilities were not spared as the Nazis felt that they were not worthy to live.Prisoners of war and civilians worked as slave labourers. In total, 11 million to 14 million people died. When he started the World war 2, many soldiers and civilians were killed, both from Germany and their enemies. Hitler did not care and continued with the war, causing much more casualties from both sides. From this it is evident that Hitler was cruel.

Hitler was over confident that he will win the war. Although there were many superpower countries resisting the invasion of Germany, he still went ahead with fighting. He is against the odds to win the war. Secondly, when he was about to invade Russia, he underestimate the power of the Soviets. he made the very insulting comment on Russia,"We have only to kick in the door and the whole rotten structure will come crashing down" This shows that Hitler was over confident. As the saying goes,"pride comes before a fall" This saying is indeed true. The Germans failed to invade Russia and eventually also lost to the Allies which were the British, the United States and many other countries opposing the Germans.

Hitler is considered a great leader but he is great in the wrong way. He ruled his people with fear.He is morally bad and evil in nature. Despite all the negative vibes and his evil wrongdoings, people still want to know more about him and some may even " admire" him. His name goes down in history as a infamous leader until today.

Reference:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolf_Hitler

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_War_II

http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/hitler1.html

http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/hitler2.html

http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/hitler3.html

:http://www.time.com/time/time100/leaders/profile/hitler4.html

The Lottery

I have just read the short story, The Lottery, by Shirley Jackson. I must say it is a very unusual story yet at the same time interesting. There are many messages the author is trying to get across. I feel the story is very meaningful though it has a shocking and chilling ending.I recommended it to my mother as I had enjoyed the story. My mother did not like the ending saying it was too cruel for the people to stone their friends. There is a question my teacher had requested us to brainstorm.

Question 5

What can we learn from this story?( How is it relevant to our society today?Do we have our own form of" lottery" as in the story?

I have learnt that silence is not golden. In the story, everyone followed the ritual blindly. Those that were against it kept quiet and even pretended to like it. Mrs Hutchinson, a character in the story, was like any other villagers in the village, not willing to make changes and not willing to voice their own opinion.If they found the ritual unfair and ridiculous, they should protest, speak up for themselves and not be like a dog, listening to the elders and leaders of the village. They should have stood up for their own beliefs. In the end, Mrs Hutchinson was chosen as the sacrifice. It was only then did she start to protest. It was by far too late! People will think she is just trying to save her own skin and therefore ignore her pleas. In the first place, she did not really like the idea of the ritual, she should not comply but instead should put a stop to this madness. If she had voiced it out , people would listen to her and may decide to abolish it. Many lives could have been saved, including hers as well. It was only when the misfortune had befallen on her before she started to complain. By then, it was just too late. We should learn from this story stand up for our own belief and not follow blindly traditions and rules. We each have a mind to think for ourselves. That is what the brain is for, to think! If we feel injustice, voice it out! People may agree with you. Many People do not voice their feelings because they are afraid of being laughed at or punished for it. If you are the first to stand up, people will tend to follow.

The story is quite relevant to our society. In a company, there are many rules and regulations, some set by the law while others set by the company itself. Imagine there is a rule that everyone hated but do not have the guts to say it to the boss. For example, the boss want everyone to wear a pink tie as he likes pink( this is not a real example. I am trying to think of a ridiculous rule) The tie is very ugly and the material too stiff making it uncomfortable. However, many people just kept quiet and do their job. Though they hated the tie, nobody dares to do anything. As the boss has power, they are afraid if they voice their opinion, the boss may be furious and fire them or give them a huge pay cut. If people are willing to stand up for their own opinion, people will follow. You just need that little spark to start the fire. If everyone supports your opinion, the boss will be overpowered and have to comply. It is because of fear that everyone follow the rules blindly.

Likewise in school, there are traditions or school rules and regulations that students must follow.Some of the students are not agreeable to these rules but they have to follow or suffer the consequences of being punished.Principals and teachers should be always willing to lend a listening ear to students with good constructive ideas so people are encouraged to voice out their opinion.

I agree that in a society, rules and regulations or traditions can exist so that there will be order in a country. However, these rules and traditions must be flexible and there must be rooms for negotiation, discussion and improvement. It is only then before the country or society can progress.

Flowers for Algernon Reflections

This is an assignment that I had forgotten to do.

Which Charlie do you like the best. the Charlie with an IQ of 68 or the one with an IQ of 200? Explain why?

I would like the Charlie that has an IQ of 68. It will be much easier to talk to as a friend. The Charlie with the IQ of 200 is too intelligent. He uses very profound vocabulary that only high intelligent people can understand. When Charlie talked to Dr. Nemur and Dr.Strauss, they too stared at him. This shows that these intelligent scientists cannot understand what Charlie is talking as that topic is at a higher level of their intelligence.IF smart scientist could not understand, we, people at the average IQ will feel equally lost, not able to understand Charlie. This will make people around him feel inferior. They will dislike him for being smarter than them and avoid him too.

The Charlie with the lower IQ is innocent. He does not know what is going on around him. He is living a carefree life with no worries. He is contented with his life . The smarter Charlie later found out that his friends like him because they made fun of him in the past. This affected him emotionally, making him fall into depression. He is definitely not happy. As he is smart, he found the ugly truth of his friends nature. He felt sad, disappointed and depressed. This could have been avoided if he remains mentally challenged. Being innocent has its benefits, as Charlie could happily live the rest of his life by not know the truth that will wreck his world.

I conclude that I like the Charlie with the IQ of 68. Although intelligence may be good, sometimes the benefits of being mentally challenged outweigh the benefits of being smart. In this case, Charlie would be happier if he had an IQ of 68 and not 200.

Water is precious!!!

Water is a symbol of life. Without it, life will cease to exist. When there is water, there is life. That's why when scientists try to find life on other planets, they first look at whether the planet has water. Water is very important to us. Do you know that our body is 75% made of water? We use water a lot in our everyday life too. However, we, humans, do not realise the importance of it. We neglect it, thus water is used extensively without control. Do you ever wonder if you can spend a day without water? It will be terrible. You will stink and you will be dehydrated. When you are dehydrated, you are incapable of action. You will be too thirsty to focus on any thing. Water is the basic need for life. Usable water is less than 1% of the water on the earth. Singapore is trying very hard to get more drinkable water for the increasing population. Why the government is trying so hard? They know that water is precious,when taken away, we will become helpless.

I have ever experienced a day without water except for drinkable water. In December last year, I went to Kuala Lumpur for a short holiday. I stayed in my aunt's house for a day. I must have passed a black cat that day or broke the mirror or something. My aunt's house was out of water as the piping had a problem so we had to go without water for a day. I did not shower, wash my hands or anything that include using water other than drinking it. I slept , haven't bathe for a day.It was horrible. Stinky smelly kind of horrible. I was used to taking long showers. Without water to shower, I felt very uncomfortable. This shows how reliant we are on water.

In the upcoming camp, we will be put to the test. This test will show our reliance on water. In the camp, water is limited. We must use it sparingly. We will only bathe once a day. I wonder how the spoilt teenagers that live in luxury throughout their lives will be able to take this. This will be a good practice to save water as when we grow up and enter the army,we will be able to adapt to the environment there faster.Water must be used sparingly there too.

Precious little water, I am an ungrateful fool not to cherish you. The benefits you have brought to mankind is uncountable, yet we do not appreciate. What will it take for everyone to cherish you. You lie there in the sea waiting for us to use you. Aah, humble and magnanimous water,you are wonderful in every way.You are able to convert into three states of matter. It can turn into ice, bring us cold drinks to enjoy and water vapour from air-conditioner to cool us down. You are amazing,water. You help us in many ways, expecting nothing in return. You are the greatest gift our lord has given us. You are one of a kind, precious water.

Is Stress Bad?

Ever since I came to the secondary school, I have been feeling more stress than ever. There are many assignments to do in a very short period of time, especially projects that have deadlines to meet. I have no free time at all, using all of them to complete my never ending piles of homework. Stress is overwhelming me, making it harder to breathe. With the approaching deadlines, I am at my wits end. What to do, what to do?

In the present society, stress is inevitable. The presence of stress is due to the competition of jobs, grades in school and almost every thing when you need to win or compete with others. People compete with each other, trying to be the best, like in school, students put in their utmost effort to score better grades than others. Whenever the examinations are near, students are very stressed as they studying so hard to be the best.Colleagues in the company have deadlines to meet for their work. They are stressed as every day, they fear being fired, get a huge scolding from their boss or getting retrenched. This stress can be both beneficial and bad too, depends on the perspective you look on this issue.

Stress can actually be very harmful. Firstly, stress can affect our health. Being very stressed, it can make us fall very sick. Stress can make you worry a lot, usually unnecessarily. Worrying too much make you weak and vulnerable to illness.
Secondly, stress can make you do silly things. For example, recently there are two cases of suicide in Nanyang Technological University(NTU) The first case surfaced when a student stab a professor of the university and then committed suicide after that. He was a whiz kid in the University but his grades were going downhill when he played computer games extensively. The University had cancelled his scholarship . He was very stressed as his final-year exams were near and if he failed he needed to retain a year so he did a very stupid thing, he stabbed. Next, another person in NTU had committed suicide by hanging himself. The reason for killing himself was not clear but it is likely because he was too stressed. Stress is very harmful as it can make people do irreparable mistakes in life. It may cause people to make wrong choices in life, destroying them totally. Stress can be a very terrible thing if you cannot cope with it.

Not everything about stress is bad. It can be a good thing too. Stress can actually improve the world. Stress can act as motivation to us. It is because of stress that encourages people to strive to their very best. It is because of stress that push human beyond their limits. When you have an assignment to complete, stress is there to motivate you to complete. It sub-consciously force you to do it as you know the consequences of not finishing your work. Stress is beneficial to you as it helps you strive for perfection in whatever you do. Of course, the stress must be managed well.

I feel that stress is both good and bad to us. It depends solely on how well we manage stress. Stress management is a very important life skill. Without it, stress can be very harmful to you and the ones around you. We must also manage our time well too as it is related to stress management. It is only when we have more time, we will be less stress. Too much stress is bad but some stress is needed to motivate oneself . It is only when we have good stress management, than we can have a bright future ahead of us.

Friends for life and friends forever

Friends to me is very important. They complete my life. Can you imagine a world without friends? The world will be filled with hatred as enemies will be abundant. These friends help you in times of need. They do not leave you alone,always waiting beside you ,willing to lend a helping hand. They stick to you and do what is best for each other. They advise you when you do wrong, trying to guide you on the right path of life. These friends are invaluable. This friendship is very hard to come by. These people are known as true friends. These are the friends you should be friends for life.

True friends help you to correct your mistakes. In life, mistakes are unavoidable. When you in a quandary, they help you solve problem. This is what true friends do. They do not shun you when you need them, they do not ignore you when you ask them for advice. They are there, in hiding, to help you. These true friends are indeed hard to come by. It may take years before you can find a friend that care for you and not because you are rich or popular. For example, there is a rich boy. He has many friends, a lot of friends actually. However, after he becomes poor in an unfortunate event, many friends left him and do not even talk to him. They have treated him like he was erased from existence. There are only one or two friends that help him get through the hard times. They do not care if he is poor or not. Seeing a friend in need, they will help out no matter how difficult the situation maybe. These friends are worth waiting for a lifetime . People have to overcome many difficulties before they realise who is their true friends.

In my new school, I do not have many friends. I don't really talk much as they do not talk much to me either. I always find making friends a difficulty when I enroll in a new school. Perhaps I am not so sociable. I find it hard to communicate with other people. I feel lonelier than ever.

Luckily, I do have a few friends. They are the first to accept me for who i am. They help me a lot when I am in trouble. They are from the same school as me in primary school. I am very lucky to have true friends despite the small number. I am very grateful to them for accompanying me from primary school to secondary school. It is a very crucial point in life where many problems surface as I'm still adjusting to secondary school life. I just hope I am able to find new friends in the new environment, I just hope people can accept me as their friend. I just hope......