Report by Private Jit Lee of 10th Kuala Lumpur Company
June 8th, 2014
KAMPAR, PERAK - The second day started with the sound of the Reveille that jolted us out of our sleeping bags. We then got ready and had our breakfast. As soon as everyone was set, we headed off to the TARUC Hall for the Sunday Service that begun with an energizing praise and worship session that had everyone pumped up and ready to receive the Word of God. Reverend Dr. T. Jayakumar, who is the Brigade National Chaplain, and was also a former member of The Boy’s Brigade, was then called upon to deliver his message. “In order to build our dreams,” he said, “we must first build lives.” He then proceeded to illustrate his point by describing a scenario of a lion-tamer using a four-legged chair to tame a lion. The point is, if we focus on too many things in our lives, just like how the lion tries to focus on all four legs of a chair, we will lose focus. The Brigade Chaplain then proceeds to say that if we put God first in our lives, everything else will fall into place. The Reverend concluded his message by challenging and asking his audience - “Are you ready to dream high?”.
After service was the long-awaited drill competition, which took place at the UTAR Sport Complex basketball court. A total of 19 teams took part in the competition. This was D-Day, as some may call it, for the drillers, an opportunity yet a challenge. As the drillers were preparing for the ultimate test, most of us were just trying to get out of the scorching sun. The drill teams came marching in, and was greeted with claps and cheers by their fellow members. I cheered as loud as I could for the companies in the state I was rooting for, which was Kuala Lumpur. After every team had done what they had needed to do, the scores were tabulated and announced. Corporal Ooi Chi Hae Nelson, who commanded SMK Air Itam team from 8th Penang had grabbed both Best Drill Team and Best Commander awards! It was a joyous moment for the winners and a moment of truth for those who had not won. We then broke off for lunch at 12.30 in the afternoon.
At 2 o’clock, we all assembled in the spacious UTAR Hall for the Dream High Key Note II, which was a fancy name for the second sharing session. Pastor Desmond was called to give his message. As we listened intently, with an occasional fidgeting here and there, I discovered that Pastor Desmond was a man of many stories. He told us a testimony about himself; that he was once in a gang syndicate selling drugs and credit card fraud. He told us that we are living beings, not salted fish, and that we can dream. A key point that he had brought up is that many cannot achieve their dreams because our biggest enemy is ourselves. I particularly like one of his points and made a motto with it, “A winner always a plan, a loser always an excuse”. ’ After the inspirational message, we all returned to our respective dorm areas for wash-up and dinner while the singing and dance teams had their final rehearsals.
After dinner was the most anticipated event of Pesta - the Singing and Dancing Competition. Each team was dressed in a range of colours and styles, from cool and dashing to simple yet elegant. The singing teams sang their hearts out, and the dancing teams danced with rigour and spirit, careful not to make any noticeable mistakes. When each team had done their upmost best, it was time for them to see how the pros did it. We all loved the judge’s rendition of the song ‘Titanium’, and were bedazzled by the wacky dance moves of the dance competition judges. Finally, then came the time of results. 8th Penang had done it again! Both competitions were won by the 8th Penang teams. After the whole photo frenzy after the event, everyone returned for wash-up and to get a good night’s rest.
Page Created: 19th June 2014
Last Updated: 20th June 2014
