turn the clocks to the wall,
homework can wait.
mother, shut your automatic trapdoor,
I do not need another reminder.
lower the volume of that incessant background chatter and static in my life,
lock the doors to the outside world.
and just let me sit for a little longer,
here
with this dear friend of mine.

--By Yue Lin, 'For A Friend'.

Sitting in a silent bedroom, house so quiet I could almost be the only person alive right now. The gentle hum of the fan above me, whispering sweet nothings into my mind, my thoughts. The pen moving sluggishly across the page, ink flowing smoothly onto the sheet of paper.

Outside, clouds gather, soon to release rain onto the sweet earth. They are blankets, the wind a gentle mother's touch, placing a comforting arm around someone's shoulders. I am lying on the bed, sprawled across the width of it, staring at the ceiling, at the billowing curtains, and feeling their wondering touch on my face...

I need this. We all do. This one week of respite, of rest. This break in the mad rush of sleeping and waking at unholy hours to meet deadlines at the eleventh hour. I need this.

And I need to stop reading between the lines. I need to stop dancing to that dreadful, hated beat. I need to feel human again, and alive, not some overloaded machine of Artificial Intelligence.

The windchimes sing sweetly into my ears; the wind plays with my wet hair, dancing and threading cool fingers through it, I can almost see it smiling..

Everyone needs a break now and again. And the thing that I just can not seem to get figured out is, why do teachers think students have boundless amounts of energy?

I know this years curriculum has been thrown into a mess because of Sars and other uncontrollable events, and I know that humans are Singapore's only resource, but does that mean students must be taxed to their limit? All their potential used to the greatest extent when they are still in school? Must they be pressed so hard to give and give until they can give no more?

Many students are depressed to the point of tears for most of the year, and the fact that they're pushed as hard as this by both teachers and parents does nothing to help.

I find that people in Singapore have this misconstrued notion that holidays are meant for extra tuition and lessons, no matter how long or short the holiday is. The thing everyone has to get into their skulls is that holidays are meant for enjoyment. They are not opportunites to fill with lesson after lesson, 'enrichment tuitions' and 'creativity classes'. Maybe it's because from the time Singapore gained its independence, Singaporeans have been influenced by their politicians to retrain, retrain and retrain again and again so that they do not get left behind. Perhaps it's because the idea that grades are the only things that matter has been stamped into Singaporeans' minds since childhood, so that, when they become parents, they push their children to excel in the academics.

While I do agree that teachers cannot afford not to give homework during the holidays, because otherwise we would forget everything taught to us, the amount of homework given is honestly too much. Even though this year's curriculum has been thrown off balance, holiday homework is always blown out of proportion and we are always given more than we can manage. Unless, of course, teachers expect students to spend every holiday they have studying!

And what with the teachers' holiday homework and parents paying for tuition, students often find that their much anticipated 'holiday' has turned more or less into home school. Singapore does not have holidays, instead, they have 'working-from-home days'.

Holidays, I repeat, are meant to be enjoyed. There must be time for work and play, and I find that in Singapore, it is usually the latter that is neglected, because Singapore's society is so exam-driven that they do not leave time for play at all. Even during holidays, a majority of the student population will have twice the amount of tuition they would normally have during school days.

This is madness. So what if this rigorous education system churns out people who eventually become the creme de la creme of the world? There is no point in all of this if all these people know is exam after exam after exam. Even if you have the textbook knowledge within your mind, there is no point if you do not have the heart.

I can almost feel the rain falling, cascading down upon my face, can almost see it, touch it. Teardrops on skin, deliciously cool, sliding down clear glass, as I lie inert on my bed, with a wish to not move for another year or so......we must all learn to relax again, to laugh, and smile with truth, even for just one week. A holiday is a holiday, even with some homework, just forget it all, for a little while...

And

I

want to remain

like this

forever...

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