In Service of My Nation, Part 2

After the brief respite the holiday gave me, I felt ill-prepared to face the horrors that were the days to come. We had left camp with a good spirit. However, the balance in power violently shifted as the newly appointed platoon, company and battalion commanders exterted their newly earned powers on us. As per a revelation told by a friend who had not went home, much had changed in my absence. Sides were taken, and hostilities aggravated. There was a power struggle, though the authorities in camp did their best to integrate these almost alien divisions in the dorms, much still happened when our handlers were not looking.

I found respite in the weekly excursions to a church, where I was surrounded by people who shared my faith. Here was where I made one of my closest friends in NS, Eugene. We were good friends, shared beliefs, related and non-related to our faith, and opinions. He was frequently missing from camp to have interviews with would-be scholarship-givers. He was determined, however, to finish NS, and I was no different in my resolution. I attempted to drown the anxiety of seperation from my parents by immersing myself in any and every activity I could. And to boot, Gene was there doing the crazy stuff with me. However, whatever hope I had of braving the storm that NS was quickly evaporated.

During the second month, Gene got a reply from one of the people who interviewed him. It seemed that he had gotten the scholarship, and that he was going to France. I congratulated him, and he continued to say that he needed to leave NS to learn French so that he could understand the lessons. I understood the logic, but for some reason, emotion is not subject to reason. From that point on, all went downhill.

The group I hung around (lets call them the English speakers) were comprised mostly of Chinese and Indians. Being English speakers, a grand majority of them scored quite well in their SPM. When the time rolled around, and the STPM offers came out, the grand majority from earlier used it as tickets out of camp. They abandoned (for lack of a better word) me in there. With our numbers severely diminished (there were originally 26 of us, but of the 26, only 4 remained), we were quickly demoralised. Demoralised in that those who vowed to stand with us till the end have so quickly and easily walked away. I, myself, was able to do just that, for I, too, had an offer. However, I am a man of my word (though some may deny that), and I promised to myself to finish it. I had few companions, some that, like me, had either the gall to reject the offer or the poor foutune to be excluded from the STPM offers. It was lonely.

Despite whatever hardships that NS brought, I think it taught me several things. First, some people are just spoiling for a fight, and will say or do anything to try and provoke you. It's almost funny how pitiful their insults and taunts become. Secondly, some people are just plain ignorant. It's funny how every single Chinese guy in the dorm is 'Chong'. Last, but not least, never be too high-strung to sell Maggie Mee (that's instant noodle to all you non-Malaysians). Because Maggie Mee is the currency of NS.

I hate NS

-Gabe