Following your interest

I was lying on the bed, reflecting on things as usual. And I decided to check my Facebook feed one last time. While doing that, I came across an article about the dilemma manny people now face especially when they choose their career paths. So the problem is, to follow what he has always wanted to do, or to conform to usual careers which is likely to bring in bigger salaries. That also reminds me that a few months ago, quite a number of sec2s were consulting me on what subject combination they should be taking. So my advice: choose only what you are interested in.

I say this because I myself have made such mistakes, and regretted it.

CHS has always had a reputation for high distinction rates in the humanities and humanities electives, especially in History. I was enticed by the consistent 90+% distinction rate in the O levels, and so felt it was the best and safest elective for me. (I chose it as an elective because there'd be no doubt that I'd be taking pure music, which I didn't regret.) I thought it was an easy A1.

However, things didn't look as rosy as I had thought. History lessons were the only lessons which I could fall asleep in, and history exams meant a full night of cramping information into my head. On top of that, I had poor inference/comparing/investigative skills and so consistently did badly in the SBQs, and my essays weren't top notch either so that meant I was always one of the last few in class. And that sucked. Also, there are still a couple more reasons but I shan't say it here.

Most importantly, I didn't do any research before picking this subject combination, I simply conformed to the level. So I didn't know it was all going to be Western history. And I had absolutely zero interest in Western history. All I learnt was how much the West failed in diplomacy in the 20th century, and how much WW2 and its devastating effects could have been prevented if they were a little smarter, and that made me unhappy. But of course, there were also some good acts, like Gustav Stresseman's reforms which saved Germany (but who knew?), and perhaps the creation of the 7 ideals that led to the inception of the LoN. But truth be told, History definitely wasn't my cup of tea.

I don't hate History altogether though. In fact, I do love Asian history. Perhaps it's because it has some relation to me as a person, while Western history just simply has no relevance to me. So I learnt, and am still learning, via the hard way that taking up a subject just for an O level A1 is not a good idea at all.

So if History isn't my cup of tea, then what is? Well, among this level, it's considered a suicide subject. And so yes -- it's Literature. I love learning about how great writers make their story great, such as how they use certain words to give different characters their character, how they write their stories to involve certain themes and reflect certain issues that were prominent at their time, how their background influences their writing, how they evoke strong feelings in their readers just by the power of words. Simply put, I'm facinated at knowing the thought process of these writers I'm creating these classics that'd be read even after a long period of time.

I was also fascinated by how different words can evoke different feelings in the reader, especially how the same word, where used differently, can create different literary effects in a piece of writing. It's amazing (for me) to know how the reader can feel this emotions, just by the clever use of language. No illustrations, no gimmicks, just words.

Unfortunately, these feelings only came to me after sec2 EOY. Then, I had already decided to take Literature as an elective. But it was not to be after I learnt that I'd almost failed by Macbeth essay. And so I decided that it was too risky. And even more unluckily, my interest in Literature had only developed throughout sec3. Thanks to Music (fortunately music was like lit) and some guy in my class who influenced me.

Then there was also my 3rd Lang. I was always fond of the Japanese language and had already decided to take it. So I filled the application with "Japanese". However (unsurprisingly) my mum convinced me that it was much safer and easier to take Malay. And so I did. Luckily I developed a fond interest in Malay over the years and so I'm now learning both. Double joy. :)

But as for History, well, I'm living in the present, and I've got no choice but to take History Elect O levels next year. I guess the best I can do now is just to try and feel for the subject (it always works, if I can do it), or shutup and just cramp before exam time, which is the norm.

And so I learnt to follow my interests, because it's a much safer option, both mentally and academically.

Goodnight! :)