Bottoms Up!

This recent ST Forum letter reminds me not to lose sight of what’s important.

I FEEL compelled to respond to Mr Lim Boon Tong’s letter, ‘You need brains or lots of dough to pursue higher education’ (Online Forum, March 10). He defends the weeping of the A-level students at Raffles Junior College as a reflection of the famed Rafflesian spirit that causes students to strive for excellence in all fields.

I have not studied in RI. Nor has my personal path been particularly entwined with that of a Rafflesian. Mr Lim’s personal account is the first I have heard describing the ethos of this famous school. What I find disturbing is that it should be considered acceptable – commendable, even – to be so distraught at not achieving perfection.

These students are the cream of our academic crop. A large portion will presumably go on to premier institutions of higher learning and in time will occupy positions of authority and power. The old stereotype that ‘RI boys rule the country’ is not entirely without basis.

In the new economy where rules are re-written with each new venture, I would be more comfortable with leaders who are acquainted with failure and setbacks, rather than with someone whose CV begins with an honour roll of his awards and scholarships.

Mr Lim also says it is normal for students to chase paper qualifications in their youth as there will be time for non-academic pursuits later. We do a disservice to our young when we tell them to ‘concentrate on their studies’ when they are young and worry about other things later. To be able to hold a conversation well, to have the skills to negotiate a sticky issue, to be a good judge of character, to have the mental strength to go beyond a setback, to be able to see another person’s point of view, to have the heart to see another person’s need – these are skills that require time-consuming investment outside of self and studies.

In the two decades since my own junior college days I have learnt many times over that the measure of a man is not where he started (with perfect scores at every major exam, for example), nor is it the place he has arrived at (CEO at 40 years of age?), but how he has travelled along his journey.

I hope my eulogy will describe me as a good wife and a loving mother, or as a good friend, or as someone who inspired others to be something more, and not as someone who did well in her O and A levels, who collected a clutch of degrees, and who landed a plum job that enabled her to buy a condominium before she turned 30.

It is vital we teach our young to look at life and achievements and failures and imperfections in perspective.

Ong Chooi Peng (Mrs)
Texas, USA

(Photo courtesy FreeDigitalPhotos.net.)