Love my team and all the people in it. I think we all learnt a lot, not only about kayaking down rivers, but about ourselves and each other. There were a lot of things I learnt from this trip, to be patient when the people around you are frustrating you, to learn that sometimes its okay to feel uncomfortable but you can't let that affect you, to be tactful and mindful of the situation and circumstances around you and also that perseverance will take you very far.
But one thing I took away from this trip was a metaphor that I thought up on the bus ride home.
Life is strangely like a flowing river.
The river is constantly changing and flowing, its one way for some and another way for others. There isn't a hard and fast way or tactic to conquer a river, it depends on luck, timing, judgement and gut-instincts.
A lot like life really.
We all go through life, and like the river, its going to be different for all of us. Sometimes, the current of life is going to push us along and help us paddle to reach our goals and destinations. Sometimes its not going to be that kind, it'll be so still that it seems like the river is stagnant and we have to work harder to get there. Other times the river have seemingly insurmountable rapids that makes you balk at its measure.
I realized that I've been struggling with my own set of rapids recently. The endless torrent of schoolwork, deadlines, emotional commitments and stupid feelings that ruin everything. If it's anything that I've learnt that can be applied to real life in Endau, it's that when you hit a rapid, you can paddle left and right but there is one thing you should never do if you don't want to capsize and possibly endanger your life: You can't stop paddling.
I've wanted to give up and throw in the towel for IB for the past term. It would be easier and its sorely tempting to just give up and sink back into the state I was in and just be swept away. Or change course and to some extent river entirely because life is getting tough.
But I can't give up now, what's infront is only going to get harder and harder, no matter which 'river' I choose. Plus I can't afford anymore 'capsizes' because its really easy to just be swept away and be lost in the torrent of negativity.
Finally found it in myself to start being more proactive and knowing that I can do this. I can finish the IB and it's a lot more comforting to know I won't be in it alone and I'll have my family, my friends and my teachers around to support me too :)
"For all rivers eventually flow to the sea, for that is the goal of all bodies of water."
Go Rompinhoods!
Tsui
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