Monday, September 15, 2008
tHe ArMy sToRy FiNaLe: Fr0m BMT
t0 SISPEC
i felt tt my entire army life is like a dream.. a walk tt i hav nv wish 2 go thru.. yet we ar called 2 serve from the nation.. so b4 this dream fades away from the mind.. let it b filed up as an archive in blogger.. and hope tt it'll not b mentioned again..
on 9 september 2006.. i embarked on a journey where all male citizens of singapore from the age of 18-20 hav 2 go thru.. national service.. after havin many meet ups wif cg members and friendz the wk b4.. i actualli stepped into tekong.. bid my parents goodbye.. and started my army life as a recruit.. where it's time 2 shave off our hair.. i didnt tink abt it tt much.. and within a few mins my hair did not stand longer than 1 cm.. lolzz.. the 1st nite i actualli tok 2 my bunk mates and get 2 noe almost all of them.. then i also called up a few of my close friendz and cg members tellin them im fine over here.. i almost cried when i call my parents.. but i hold back and told myself 2 b mentally strong 4 watever tt comes my way..
the 1st nite is over and dawn appeared.. when i woke up from the bed.. i onli saw more bunks and companies tt surround our buildin.. there were no cars.. civilians.. birds.. jus buildings tt looked similar 2 one another.. at tt time xinhong taught me 2 "jus look 4ward 2 lunch and dinner everydae as the daes would pass realli fast.." and it realli helps.. soon after 3 daes passed.. then 7 daes.. i jus cant wait 4 the 14th dae 2 end 2 bookout.. and finally the dae came.. and we booked out.. everyone was overjoyed.. but at the same time we realized we had already embraced the army culture when we recited the SAF 7 core values even when we ar on the bus..
so the cg at tt time got somewhat frustrated abt all the army jargons i had.. but too bad.. im jus bein myself.. since i had already embraced the army culture.. might as well do the best i could rite?? hahaha..
soon after there's field camp.. 2 b honest it's pretti relaxed if i were 2 compared it wif the other numerous field camps tt i had been.. perhaps its the lifestyle of livin in the field tt i did not adapt and as a result i was actualli somewhat strugglin out there.. but thankfully the demand of standards were not high.. and im actualli able 2 cope wif it.. then there's the SIT test where it tests our leadership skills out in the field.. i tried 2 impress but somehow i didnt make it.. but at the same time i knew my limits.. but nevertheless i tot tt i did ok..
i had ambitions 2 become an officer when i started out initially.. but somehow my platoon mates outshone me in terms of fitness and leadership.. and as a result i re-considered my options and i decided 2 settle 4 a specialist role.. i do it 4 the money.. but i realized tt i was totally wrong in my later yrs when i covet the pay..
finally 3 mths had passed and we were passed out.. received my posting 2 SISPEC thereafter..
the camp is in pasir laba and it was realli at the wild wild western part of singapore.. 4 the 1st few daes i actualli managed 2 settle down.. but i realized tt the trainin has verii high tempo and its fast paced.. they wan the best of u within a short span of time.. i was rather stressed at tt time 2 learn all the knowledge tt had been taught 2 me.. and life in pasir laba is verii diff from BMT where everythin is nicely taken care off and the instructors takes gddd care of u.. here the instructors will push u 2 the limits whenever possible and the administrations were crappy.. and as a result i was always kinda lost and i do not noe wat 2 do..
i rem i was a total flop when i took up the role of a platoon sergeant.. i was bein scolded many times 4 poor guidance and instructions.. and i always felt verii low abt myself.. soon after i actualli decided tt its not my nature 2 become an infantry commander.. mayb i should try somethin else.. but i realized tt this decision had actualli hindered my leadership tests along the way..
there were a couple of field camps at the 5th and 6th week of training.. i did verii badly and was a major flop.. my instructors came up 2 me and scolded me badly 4 the performance lack.. i was so stressed.. my sect mates were not verii happi wif me too.. at tt time onli my buddy stood by me and told me tt he'll help me see thru this course.. i thank him 4 always bein wif me thru out my days in SISPEC.. he realli helped me alot.. and the test came on the 7th wk and once again i did quite badly 4 it.. in the end my platoon commander came up 2 me and tok 2 me.. tellin me tt he'll pass me on a condition pass.. as i displayed a gdd attitude and also i gave the ops order clearly and in gdd presentation..
but i dun consider myself as a useless bum in SISPEC.. at least i managed 2 run 4 a record timing of 9:44 for my 2.4km run durin my IPPT test.. i also passed the SOC 4 the timing of a corporal..
overall my fitness was much better than BMT.. and also i had completed the 28km route march and stood at the parade square receivin the corporal rank.. soon after i received a shock postin: becomin a medic spec at nee soon camp..
wEiwEi|8:31 PM
