300 ... Prepare for Glory! Tell of Victory!

Caught 300. Great film, not because it's the best adapted screenplay, or that it's the best film of the year, for these it certainly is not. But because of its classic historical tale itself. Well, some film connoisseurs would like to believe that it could be told with more stylistic poetry and pacing. Yet, this is about a real story of a brutal battle in a brutal age by a brutal people against another brutal people. In that context, the simplicity and starkness of its brutality and directness of its killing stands as a clear image of that age.

The tale of the 300 Spartans in their last stand against the full might of the Persian Empire at the Hot Gates of Greece is a classic one, one in which a few prevailed over many, holding out for an impossible stretch of time, till the bitter end. The Battle of Thermopylae is still studied in all military academies the world over.

It was a battle doomed to failure, but the heroic Spartans still persisted, because they saw the larger victory it would accord Greece, for it forestalled the progress of the Persian army, and allowed the Athenians, Spartans and other Greek nation-states to prepare themselves for the final onslaught. It was not the battle to end all battles, but it was the critical battle that allowed for final victory thereafter.

And the Spartans in their full heroic glory stood the test of time.

Classic quotes from the annals on the Battle:
So much the better, we shall fight in the shade
Prepare for Glory
Tell of Victory

It's heroic and tragic pathos at its very best.
The Last Stand.
300.

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Military Lessons from the Spartans:
... There can be no weak link in the rank and file of the entire formation when one goes into battle. All must be equal in every aspect. All shields must be held at the same height, with no gap possible. All in one and one in all. It's not merely individuals, but a brotherhood. Otherwise, one would fail. The quality of the army is only as good as its weakest link. There can be no weakest link.
... The whole formation must be United As One. All must move with deadly swiftness and precision. The success of the attack will only be as good as how sharp and together one and all executes the thrusts and moves. Attack together, attack fast, be clean and swift, and then move on again.
... Plan well ahead, and plan well. One wrong decision or move can very well cost the entire battle.
... Think not of personal glory alone, but of the ideals and glory of the nation.

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Lessons from Britain, Churchill, WWII:
Winston Churchill: We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the seas, we shall fight in the skies ... we shall never surrender! (WWII)
Britain all alone against the entire might of Nazi Germany, and standing firm, the lone fortress in the sea.... Their Finest Hour.

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Our Battles 2007: SYF, Prelims and 'O' Levels.

And It Was To Be A Manageable Paper.

Hmm ... still marking prelims 1 compre....

It was to be a manageable paper.
It was to be a paper that simulates the 'O' Level standards.
It was to be a paper which people could at least pass.

But it was not to be.

And it's not because you could not comprehend the passage.
And it's not because you could not comprehend the question.
It was merely that the you did not bother to go that little more extra mile to give a quality answer.
And all your answers came to naught.

It's HIGHLY irritating to see that lack of extra effort to THINK beyond and THINK further.
It's HIGHLY disappointing to place the zeros in the right margin.

It's frankly a case of having the intelligence, but not having the mental stamina and mental demand.
SO THERE'S STILL HOPE
Only if you really want to do that.

And it's not just wanting.
It's not just knowing that you want.
It's not just feeling that you want.
It's not just saying that you want.
It's about doing it - really putting the effort to get what you want.
It's about finally achieving what you want.

The final DOING and ACHIEVEING is what you have to do now.

SO JUST DO IT. DON'T SLACK.
You may think you have been working very hard, but it's not enough - you have to inject it into the actual answering too - you have to give quality answers. You must do more.

Heard that you guys have started letting your guard down; you have not been as focused these few days as the first English paper day. Shame on you then.
Like I said that day:
This is not a time to celebrate a good start and then get complacent.
This is a time to celebrate a focused start and then to push further.
And you have failed to keep up the momentum.
That will be the beginning of your downfall.
And this is your main weakness: easily distracted and easily complacent.

So again, MOVE IT, DO IT.

No time for complacency and vegetation in the hols. Continue with the practices.
More Quizzes and Mock Papers for EL when school reopens.
And you need it.

PRESS ON.
It will be EXCITING and FULFILLING.
THAT I WILL PROMISE.

And your FINAL DISTINCTION will be sweet!
L1R5 = 6.
English A1

Renaissance. Rebirth.

Renaissance - The Rebirth.

After some 3 months, I am finally emerging from my own dark ages and middle ages, to relaunch and rediscover.

I have been declaring to all and sundry that I am bored, that there's just a sense of emptiness that I am floating in. Day in day out, it's the same routine. What's the point? Indeed, I have been walking the same underpass every morning for some 9 years, rushing early in the morning. How more predictable can it get? Even the Ritz-Carlton does not excite me at all. Everything feels the same, though everything is different. So, I guess Mary is right - it's all a matter of my self-decreed state of inertia, in other words my own perspective. So thanks to all, especially these few days; I am now officially in my new cycle.
So there, 2 things this year, officially. 'O' Levels and SYF.

The other day, Daryl of 4-4/2006 was just telling me that I should blog bout their 'O' Level Results, just to start my blog going again. So I am taking up his suggestion, and will just give my two cents worth. Indeed, we have all worked extremely hard for his batch. As I have said to many, I have never worked so hard before - bl__dy hard. And all our hard work, as a school, has paid off. They have done extremely well. It is not easy, frankly, especially with all the diversions throughout last year. But the batch has risen to the occasion, and the results say it all: L1r5 of 9.5, topping the nation in Maths, History, Social Studies, Biology, and coming in 6th for English and Physics. 57% Distinction and MSG of 2.3 for English. 100% Distinction for MEP Higher Music, and 75% Distinction for Music. It's a Band 1 for Catholic High! Finally we are back again! That sense of a comeback is tremendous. And it's not merely a comeback, but a roaring surge! Kudos to the Class of 2006, and to the entire team of teachers who worked and slogged.

I think the current 2007 batch of Sec 4s are feeling the motivation, the stress, and the fear. And this is good. You know you have got to maintain, if not better, the performance that you seniors have attained for our alma mater. And from the lead-up to Prelims One, I think MOST have shaped up, and settled down. Well, only for MOST. There are still a handful still in self-denial. But for all, let's keep telling ourselves: THERE'S NO MORE TIME. WE JUST GOT TO KEEP PRESSING AHEAD. NO TURNING BACK. NO STOPPING. JUST KEEP GOING. MOMENTUM! And after Prelims 1, DON'T SLACK in the holidays. Results 2006 was not built by slacking, but by sheer grit and hardwork. So there, Class of 2007, you lead us now. SHOW US THE LIGHT.

Then there's SYF. This is it. Four mere weeks before SYF. How many SYFs have I gone through since back in Cath High? 1999, 2001, 2003, 2005, and now 2007. From a Silver, to our first Gold, to the next Gold, then the Gold With Honours. This year, we must get our Gold With Honours, and more! It's a long journey, and NOTHING IS FOR GRANTED, NOTHING IS EASY. Like I told the band the other day, this is the time for sheer grit, determination, tenacity and will. We just got to keep forging ahead. We should be confident, but not over-confident. In fact, we should not be at this point confident of a GWH, because that is certainly the sign of complacency and a sure path towards disappointment. We must practise like there is no tomorrow, and we must be simply brimming with desire and exertion towards the GWH. Only then can we be certain that there is hope of that. So, CHSSB: faster, further, higher.

And for me, on a personal note, this is gona be my last year of association with the Band. In fact, last year's 2006 CHSSB Sec 4 was my last full-time batch, and they all knew it. That's why I practically gave my all, for Aesthetique, for everything, last year. And indeed, this year, I just cannot come down to the Band as often as I like anymore, because of commitments. My appearances in the band have been sparse and at odd hours, usually right at the very end. But in a sense, 2007 CHSSB Sec 4 is the final batch which I have had since Sec 1, and I owe it to you, and you expect it of me, to complete the SYF together. So this will be our last SYF, and we MUST give our everything for it. We cannot have regrets. There will be no 'What Ifs'. There will only be a sense of Mission Accomplished and Sweet Victory. We CAN, MUST, and WILL Soar!

Then, that's it. Period.