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NYJC Celebrates Nation's Big Day with
Parade & Talent Show
by Chia Lingxian and Alice
Zhao
On 8 August, NYJC celebrated the nationĄŻs
42nd National Day. In the morning, the campus was already swarming
with students and staff proudly donning reds and whites - the
nationĄŻs colours to mark the event with a formal parade and a
concert.
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The Parade: A Solemn Event
Students assembled at the parade
square; an excitedly bubbling river of reds and whites flowing
onto the grounds. The studentsĄŻ chatter immediately ceased
as Parade Commander, Jasper Zhao, barked out a series of
orders in his booming voice,commencing the parade.
Making their debut at this yearĄŻs
parade were the colours of the four Houses. The flag bearers
held their heads high, their backs ramrod straight as they
responded to their commands.
In their uniforms representing
various uniformed groups, the flag bearers carried themselves
with a much more dignity than usual.Some of us know individual
flag bearers personally, as classmates, as friends or as
CCA mates. But on that day, attired in their neatly pressed
uniforms and their focused demeanour, they seemed to have
transformed into an entirely different entity altogether. |
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This effect of this atmosphere carried
through during the singing of the National Anthem and the recitation
of the Pledge. For once, the majority of the students felt a stirring
within them as they sang along with the College Band and Choir.
This was in contrast to the regular morning assembly where a sense
of routine and ritual usually prevails over these daily declarations
of allegiance to the State.
Somehow the mandatory (sometimes even
monotonous) event seemed different on this day. The National Pledge
carried on next, with similar gusto. Beyond the formality of the
military-style parade, there was also a presentation by four representatives
of the main ethnic groups that Singapore comprises. JC1 students,
Kah Kin, Ridhwan, Loshini and Castella took turns to read the
National Day Message to schools by the Minister of Education,
Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam. In his message, Mr Tharman assured
students that despite facing tough competition, Singaporeans will
survive by nurturing their natural talents. As such, he highly
encouraged students to go live their dreams.
After the parade, there was more
excitement to come. The main highlight of NYJCĄŻs National Day
celebrations was up next: The Concert - and what a way to show
off the talents of staff and students alike!
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The Concert: guest singers dazzle crowd
The performance by Javin They
from Campus Superstar and NY Alumnus, Nathaniel Tan,from
Project Superstar, was definitely the highlight of the concert.
The duo was amazing, like two
guy serenading a girl. The solo from the charming Nat was
delivered very smoothly and easily won the hearts of the
audience.
Fans screamed and cheered enthusiastically.
Some even recorded the performance with their mobile phone
cameras. It was clear that Javin was a tad in awe of the
more experienced Nat. Javin appeared more reserved, while
Nat was just amazing with his movement and vocal control.
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the whole, the concert was entertaining. Staff and studentsalike
showcased their talents, reflecting their different cultures
and beliefs, and reinforcing the diversity of our social
fabric.
When the visitors from Indonesian
high school, SMAN 71, came up to perform a traditional dance
item, it was definitely worth the wait. The Indonesian dancers
with their graceful choreography totally mesmerized the
audience - the guys, especially.
I swear I saw a guy sitting near
me get a nosebleed... guess it finally dawned on him the
importance of international relations! |
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