the spring of my offspring

i'm really amazed by these sprogs of mine.

jil has been selected and groomed for final speaker to represent her school in debates, while on selection process for prefects next year while she humbly organises her life by setting up her CIP hours by herself. apparently she should be starting next year but like me in kiasu fashion has completed it this year so she has time to free up for other concerns. all this in her own initiative and i dare say a future ambitious focus which should lead her to paths of commercial success through sheer motivation and self-discipline. even her recent weight loss i gathered was from getting herself to jog, walk the dog daily without my advice.

jo of course marches to her own beat. she pushes herself only in projects she finds personally rewarding or has some intrinsic value. but that's ok coz at least she has a certain quiet confidence in what she does well and has grown to be quite self-aware. these are traits which should secure her happiness in her future choices. the other day at the cinema the counter person had forgotten to return my credit card and i had to trundle back to retrieve it, annoyed that we had got all the way to the other part of amk for lunch. so when i returned with my card, she said she'd probably be blur and do the same and if she worked there there would be a pile of forgotten cards hahaha. i guess what remains for her is a good generous spirit which should see her with good relationships with family and friends.

her free-hand rendering on my school tablet.she is so talented in her quirky individualism

an awesome weekend as always. mulched around town, checked out the Fullhouse venue as potential wedding one. not nice. fail hahha too kiddy

then a sumptious lunch buffet at Coca @ taka with her family as a pre-bd celebration. no piccies as we were too famished haha. they really are the coolest pre-adults all teens going on 30smth. i am blessed. and so is she being a part of us. they keep us in stitches all the time. just today jo made me laugh so hard in her reading dramatically the fb updates of her peers like it were some voice-over in a movie. she's so wicked in that deceptive grandma knitting away demeanour <333

knitted for granpa a golf sock in <2hrs

and somedays when she seems so self-deprecating because she doesn't have a prolific social circle, i just want to tell her if no one can appreciate the adorkable precious soul that you are, they can seriously fuck right off.

jil made her milestone public speaking in front of the new sec 1s and their parents.found the transcript of her speech on my lappy. hehe beams

Sec 1 Experience Talk

Good morning/afternoon parents and students of 2013, hi my name is Jillian and as one of the many 2012 sec 1 students I will be talking to you about my experience in SJC.

Many fears I experienced:

1)      From 4 subjects to 8 subjects

-worried of trying to cope with so many subjects

-the constant stress

(Solution)*fears were unfounded* sec 1 work was quite easy and basic, look at it in a different point of view, eg. Science contributes to most of the two subjects, History, literature and geography can be quite interesting. Approachable and friendly and would always put in their best to help their students.

2)      Friends

-making new friends

-keeping old ones

-(Parents) making right ones

(Solution) making friends was easy if you be yourself, if they accept you as who you are you have found the right ones. Our students do not hesitate to extend IJ friendship with new students, especially juniors.

3)      New environment

-older students

-all girl’s environment

-(solution) more mature and even offers to help out when needed and usually instead of the student a teacher or a senior, they approach you to ask if they need help. (based on my other friends) it was a lot easier to communicate with other students without feeling embarrassed about certain things that only girl’s should know of.

Of course I got to enjoy certain journeys and events with new people, learning more that I ever had,

Eg.Sec 1 orientation camp

-enjoyed the games that were well planned

-visiting certain historic sights

-meeting new people and making more friends

Eg.CCA

-learning/improving new skills

-making new friends

-learning more things that develops my critical thinking

So after my year in a totally new environment with new people and new subjects have I changed? Well I am pleased to share, yes I have changed. After coming to SJC I have become more confident in my decision making skills and have ultimately gained trust from my family and peers but most importantly I have learnt to be more independent in my work that I have responsibilities to hold, even though they may not be as important as others, responsibility is responsibility. Therefore after listening to my experience in this school I hope you too can benefit from it and maybe have a great experience to tell too. Thank you!