Personal Story (DSA Application typing about Melbourne YLP)

Personal Story

To say that my experiences in Trinity College, Melbourne changed my life would be an understatement. With every moment that passes, we are all different people. We learn and experience new things every day, but this was different. This trip was a turning point in my life that kick-started me into taking my life and the things I do with it seriously.

I participated in The Young Leader’s Programme from 1 – 15 December 2013, and was placed in the Arts Stream, where I learnt about Psychology. Here, I learnt to love learning. Being surrounded by smart people who were innovative and willing to share their ideas was a breath of fresh air for me. This attitude was a stark contrast to the ones most people my age had back home. It has been said that ‘Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire’. Well up until that point, the fire in me had never been lit. Back home, hands rarely went up in class for fear of getting the wrong answer. Sometimes my classmates and I were too bored of the repetitive, seemingly useless information being pumped into our heads, to pay attention.

Being forced to step out of my comfort zone during activities, such as conducting social experiments, singing on Karaoke Night and running around during a mini-Amazing Race, made me realise that I could afford to be less afraid of failure. I found out about the limitlessness I had as a human being, and how harnessing that could make a difference in the lives of the people around me.

On my last night in Melbourne, I stayed up with my friend, William, and we recounted our favourite moments from the programme. We sat in the cold on the open field facing the dorms until 4am, when William had to leave for his early flight.

 As I took the chance to have one last stroll around campus, the hallways seemed too quiet, too empty, too still. All those familiar places, that had once held so many good memories, were haunted with the ghosts of those not yet dead, only gone.

It is difficult to explain the sheer amount of homesickness I felt in the weeks following my arrival back in Singapore. Whilst I do admit that now, that feeling has long since faded into a soft, painful tugging at the back of my mind, the effect it had on me hasn’t.

Before Melbourne, I was a confused teenager who just floated by with no idea what her purpose was in life, except to have fun. My grades were of a relatively high standard even though I never really cared enough to study hard. It has been 5 months since I landed back in Singapore, and I’m still a confused teenager, but now I have goals and a purpose and most importantly, I look forward to tomorrow.

“So we beat on, boats against the current borne back ceaselessly into the past” – F. Scott Fitzgerald.