Turbulence

An alumnus asked me to meet him under the big oak tree, a landmark of my school. I arrived at the location fifteen minutes early. I sat there and watched as people were passing by me. I always love to spend time observing people and guessing what they are feeling – it allows me to connect with other people in some unknown ways. The alumnus arrived on time. We were taking a stroll around the area when the alumnus asked me to go check out the LGBTQ+ society with him. I rarely tell anyone about how I feel when people keep assuming that I like talking about girls and dating girls – it makes me a bit uncomfortable most of the time when the guys keep talking about dating girls with me. But I trusted the alumnus, and I shared with him. Actually, the alumnus had asked me to check out the society with him a long time ago. But I kept turning down the offer since I was very busy with my assignments and examinations. Now that the semester was over, I finally had time to go with him. To be honest, I had some reservations about the invitation at first, but it wouldn’t hurt to try, right? It would be a waste of time at worst – apparently, I would not be assassinated merely because I went to an event organised by the LGBTQ+ society.

The sky is a little bit grey from my window today. Is it a natural phenomenon, or a reflection of my sorrow? Grey is a diffusion of black and white, Ambivalent, yet commonplace. When I look out of my window, I wish I could be a bird, To fly across the sky, and be bereft of this ambiguity. Yet my heart gains weight as the thought approaches, Gain weight not of muscle, but of woe. Would the sky still look grey to me, when I were a bird?

I had the wonderful opportunity to embark on a Global Experience (GEx) study trip to Bandung and Yogyakarta, Indonesia, with a professor and fellow students from NUS College. The study trip spanned one month (half a month in each city) and comprised visits to houses and studios of prominent local artists, hikes to notable landmarks of the areas, a street art biking tour, student consultations, and student-initiated trips. I was attracted to this study trip by the theme of creative city development. I have always been fascinated by the arts and the question of how we can use the arts to address the social problems in the city. That is a question that has intrigued me for a very long time, long before the trip. Whenever I read a book or observed a painting, I have always wondered if the arts can be more than a medium for self-expression. What if the arts were used as a form of non-verbal language to discuss and dissect social problems?