桜の雨

Tomorrow is the last official day of school, although for the next couple of weeks there will still be remedial lessons and so on.

Tomorrow thus represents an ending to many things. An end of official education in the Singapore system and in ACSI, an end to the concept of classes that we’ve grown accustomed to over 12 years. Probably also an end to many friendships, because as much as I’d like to believe that I wil be able to keep in contact with all the people I’ve met over the past 6 years, clearly it’s not really possible to do so, and my lack of initiative in establishing conversations means it’s quite likely losing touch will be something I’ll have to get used to (again). I guess Facebook might help a bit, but it’s not the same as saying hi and chatting for a while with people you’ve known for so long when you see them in the corridoor, even though you only see each other maybe a few times a week briefly.

The things I’ve come to appreciate from school have almost all been non-academic (insert rant about sucking at exams). Except for EE, Chem Oly and maybe Math Port, I don’t think anything else has really made me enjoy IB (or IB as the school has modified it). At this point it’s better to separate ACS as a culture and ACS(I) as an academic institution. While I pretty much dislike quite a lot of what I’m forced to do in IB, and I think sometimes the school makes it worse, it doesn’t detract from my appreciation of what the school has done for me the last 6 years. I think Rene’s speech at chapel covered some of it, like how everyone will remember stuff like Math Port because we all suffered through our own little hells everytime IAs are due. But it’s just a bit sad that we are only able to laugh at it because it was such a horribad time, and instead of “Hey we had so much fun” it’s more of “Holy shit do you remember the suckage”.

The school has changed much over these 6 years, and it’s barely recognizable as the place I stepped into in Sec 1. Secondary school is really different from IB, and I think perhaps a sign of how much people miss the good old times then would be the wearing of old ties/berms tomorrow (or it could also be just people wanting to be bored and do something stupid but hey). Personally, I’ll be kind of happy to leave because the administration seems to be a bit screwed up for lack of a better word. After “YESSS exams are over I’m finally done with all this bs” is “What now?” 6 years is 1/3 of our lives. It’s weird to suddenly have this place that we’ve been in for so long suddenly disappear from our lives, and probably take on much less significance very quickly.

However, I still like both Sec and IB education which I’ve experienced and I think it’ll be really sad when next year there isn’t school to come back to, friends to greet on the first day and laugh at how stupid they look with a new haircut or something. We’ve taken it for granted that we’ll always see each other, perhaps not so frequently but sooner or later somewhere in school. After the exams are over, after GEP chalet (we ARE having one I hope) and other random miscellaneous activities, we will only see the people we used to see weekly either monthly, yearly, or perhaps even longer timespans. It’s something which I thought would never happen, but then I’m pretty sure once done with uni/NS and into the working world, it will be radically different from what I’ve always taken to remain unchanging.

I guess the sianness of these 2 years was made up for by having friends (or as the pessimistic and cynical me likes to say, people who I think are friends and hopefully they are but not very sure and ohwell fml) and people to share the pain with, and many happy memories. Even if I get 45, I would thank the school first for giving me the opportunity to have experienced the non-academic aspects, like OEP and WOW, and for letting me meet my friends; the education seems somewhat of a secondary (harhar) point.

この二年の旅が終わった。今日は最後の日だ。でも、いつまでもその思いでが忘れない。

ーーーーーーーー

それぞれの場所へ旅立っても
友達だ
聞くまでもないじゃん
十人十色に輝いた日々が
胸張れと背中押す

土埃(つちぼこり)上げ競った校庭
窮屈(きゅうくつ)で着くずした制服
机の上に書いた落書き
どれもこれも僕らの証

白紙の答辞には伝えきれない
思い出の数だけ涙が滲(にじ)む
幼くて傷つけもした
僕らは少しくらい大人になれたのかな

教室の窓から桜ノ雨
ふわり手のひら
心に寄せた
みんな集めて出来た花束を
空に放とう

忘れないで
今はまだ…
小さな花弁(はなびら)だとしても
僕らは一人じゃない

下駄箱で見つけた恋の実
廊下で零(こぼ)した不平不満
屋上で手繰(たぐ)り描いた未来図
どれもこれも僕らの証

卒業証書には書いてないけど
人を信じ人を愛して学んだ
泣き
笑い
喜び
怒り
僕らみたいに青く青く晴れ渡る空

教室の窓から桜ノ虹
夢の一片(ひとひら)
胸奮わせた
出会いの為の別れと信じて
手を振り返そう

忘れないで
いつかまた
大きな花弁(はなびら)を咲かせ
僕らはここで逢おう

幾千の学び舎の中で
僕らが巡り逢えた奇跡
幾つ歳をとっても変わらないで
その優しい笑顔

教室の窓から桜ノ雨
ふわりてのひら
心に寄せた
みんな集めて出来た花束を
空に放とう

忘れないで
今はまだ…
小さな花弁(はなびら)だとしても
僕らは一人じゃない

いつかまた
大きな花弁(はなびら)を咲かせ
僕らはここで逢おう

No matter how hard it hurts me.
I’ll never say good bye.
Your presence will always linger in my heart.
…wanna see your smile again.

~ by Amamiya Yuuko on October 13, 2009.