By Su Zhixuan (22J01)
I’m sure many of us are going into the new year feeling a little bit uneasy. Maybe it’s because of the stack of undone homework sitting on your table for the past week. Maybe it’s that school is starting in three days and you’re not quite ready for socialising again. Or maybe it’s the sudden realisation that this is the year we’re taking our A levels, and you still don’t know what to do with your life. Who knows, some of you reading this right now may actually be excited and can’t wait to start the grind once school reopens! (If you’re one of them, I’m scared of you?? But glad to see your positivity 😄)
Regardless of how you’re feeling, I’d like to share a few things from my “final-year-in-RV resolution” before we embark on the year ahead together as a cohort :)
1. Take more photos 📸
This is our final year in RV, so take more photos with those around you! We take for granted the things we experience on a daily basis, because we think they will always be there - be it queuing for caifan, seeing manja chilling in GNC, rushing to lectures without your notes, or going home after CCA when it’s already dark. These mundane experiences we have in school and don’t give a second thought about will soon become the things we look back on and wish we had photo memories of. While we definitely should remember to live in the moment, don’t forget to snap more pics and take more vlogs! Your future self will thank you. <3
MANJA 🐾 (Photo credits to Neo Rui Ern Vanessa, 22J02)
2. Make more memories 🫂
Many of us are entering the new year with a “no play all grind” mentality, and yes, it’s time to get serious and study (I’m sure we need no more reminders of this...), but I think that we should also spend time having fun and doing cool things with the people we love. This may be the last year we see some of our friends - on a daily basis at least (💀) - before we go our separate ways. Personally, I wouldn’t want to reflect upon my JC experience and realise all I did was study, so go for more dinners at Jurong Point after school, or enjoy more study sessions at nice cafés. It’s possible to have both good grades and quality time with people, as long as you have a balance and prioritise what matters to you! 🫶
Shejianjian Noodles at Jurong Point, highly recommended!
3. Be happy in what you’re doing 😼
Studying can be really draining, and we’re bound to feel stressed out. But don’t spend all the time this year worrying and being unhappy. After all, you’ll never be a J2 student mugging for As and suffering with your friends again! Find things to do to destress, study with your friends to get some extra motivation, and appreciate the small moments in school that bring you happiness. We only experience everything once, so let’s make the best of it. :)
RV 💪
After all that, the final thing I want to bring up is that there’s no need to worry about the things we’re missing out on, or not spending our time to the fullest. Don’t keep thinking about how you should be living and miss out on the things that are happening right in front of you. Sometimes, just being present is enough ‼️
Everything so far may sound very positive and inspiring, but the truth is that by the time February rolls around, I may have already forgotten all this... but I think the important thing to remember is to simply treasure those around us and make an effort to stay happy, even with all the stress and work we think we can’t handle.
Let’s go into the new year with a positive mindset and have a good time together :)