Even I'd agree, with my horrendous attitude in camp (which would qualify as a working attitude, although the main difference lies in the voluntary aspect of the job - an issue we shall not touch on today) and my sinfully high frequency of sleeping in church, enthusiasm at a church event would probably be the last thing on my mind. And the sad truth is, before I got to ywca, that was possibly the only thing on my mind - to get it over and done with.
By sunday afternoon, over lunch, I was somehow hoping it'd get extended - that i'd get ONE more day, at least, at the event. Aside from the rooms being wonderful - with comfortable beds and great roommates Daniel and Jeremy - and the food decently good, I discovered a part of myself that I'd thought lost in the meaningless, repetitive time I've spent in the army. I wouldn't phrase it as rediscovering my faith, although that's just part of it. More aptly, I managed to save, in the nick of time, the last glowing embers of what used to be, and thankfully now is, that burning passion to teach, to share what I believe in.
Checking in late on friday night was, initially, a bad start to the conference. At least that's what i thought; it didn't actually affect anything, but I did miss a huge chunk of a highly entertaining session with Bro Collin Wee on Encountering God in your Inner self or something like that. Of course there was part 2 the next morning, but still, i thought it'd have been useful to have been there earlier. The night obviously didn't end with talks and going to bed - at least not for Daniel, Kelly, Michael and I. After a wild goose chase around Boat Quay for a Starbucks branch which, as it turned out, was supposed to be a Coffee Bean branch - egregious mistake courtesy of Kelly's wonderful hearing - at circular road (heard, once again, as Circuit Road - MacPherson, not Boat Quay). Confusing sentence? It's probably less than half as confusing as that night.
Eventually, we landed up at Timbre, where the 22 yr old Kelly got called back by her mom round about 12 midnight, and Michael being the gentleman he is, finished up his glass of Happy Hour beer and accompanied her back to Fort Canning Lodge, leaving Daniel and I at Timbre. Incidentally, Timbre's at the bottom of Fort Canning, but that was an irrelevant fact in Kelly's argument with her mom. Really. Bumped into Daniel's friend Rachel Tan or something, supposedly from AC, SB Combi, my year, but as always I had no idea.
So that was night 1, ending at 3am when we finally went to bed. Jeremy had just got back from his lesson plan discussion thingy (hardworking eh) with Germaine and Shermaine. No they're not sisters. So while we were pubbing, he was working. Somebody pass the award to the hardworking ex-SMI instructor, who worked under Cpt Joel and Staff Alan at the school from which I hail from. Scum school. nevermind.
Day two was relatively dry. Part two of Bro Collin's talk, followed by a session with Sister Edwina Yeow on breathing and speaking. Interesting stuff, really. She's a great presenter/speaker, and those who didn't know she was a Sister actually thought she was some drama coach. The next speaker on the agenda, sadly, was one who would have really needed Sister Edwina's session - Bernard Wee. Honestly, after the 2.5 hour session, I've still got nothing but a nebulous idea of what he wanted to convey. Sad, but true.
Thankfully the night ended on a high note (at least for me, at my table) at Coca Restaurant. Steamboat isn't exactly my cup of tea, but that night was insane. Probably because of the two bottles of wine per table allocation which resulted in Daniel and I downing most of the wine and getting rather inebriated. I actually ate crab. Let's see, at our table, there were 9 people: Andrea, Dom, Daniel, Anne, Joanne (is it?), Me, Greg, Santoso and one more person whom - with deepest apologies - I can't seem to recall. Blame it on the wine, really. 2006 wine opened in 2007 wasn't an enjoyable experience - too sharp in the beginning, too sweet after aerating.
Following that was the insane cable car ride to sentosa and back from mt faber. On board my cable car was Keenan, Daniel, Dom, Andrea, Greg and I - an insane combination which soon became an oscillating jukebox/screambox suspended on a cable. Of course, we weren't the only ones making noise. Face it, there were many others, much more significant contributors to noise pollution that night than us.
I ended my night with tao huay, concussed on my bed. Thanks to kelly who went to god knows where to buy tao huay from.
And started my morning the next day LATE. But keenan was fine with it. For dry details, refer to kelly's article in the church bulletin. Actually, i'll just footnote it after i'm done.
So, yes, it was a thoroughly enjoyable experience. Any day, I'd sign myself up for it again. Of course, at a discounted rate. I'll probably be involved in next yr's planning, thanks to my violent opposition tothe venue being Orchid Country Club. Honestly, imagine trying to get to Timbre from YISHUN. No way! Orange Grove road or Stevens road would be WAY better locations. Let's hope I can make it work in a better way, for all of us :)
This is kelly's article, last few paragraphs by me (if you recognize the drastic change in style :) )
Come as living stones, and let yourselves be used in building the spriritual temple, where you will serve as holy priests to offer spiritual and acceptable sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ.
1 Peter 2:5
The first ever St. Mary’s Catechists’ Conference was held at the Fort Canning Lodge YWCA. The theme “Living Stones” was chosen, emphasizing the role of the catechist in helping to build the foundation of the parish community. The main purpose was to forge stronger bonds between the catechists, to equip the catechists with classroom techniques, encounter spiritual growth and last but not least, rejuvenate, relax and have fun!
The first talk was presented by the ever zealous Brother Colin Wee, titled “Encountering God in Your Inner Self”. His talk was intriguing, elaborating on the different levels of thinking. It made us more conscious of our behaviour and the impact of our words on our youths.
A classroom presentation workshop was also conducted for the Primary and Secondary levels by Victoria Dinesh and Edwina Yeow respectively. Useful classroom skills such as voice control and specific breathing techniques were taught. Using our diaphragm, we learned how to project our voice and the correct intonation to use in order to keep our students interested. The usage of props, skits and story-telling was especially useful for the Primary level.
The second talk on “The Person of the Catechist” by Bernard Wee allowed us to reflect on who we were as catechists and why we became catechists in the first place. Sitting in groups of five, we each took turns to describe our journey towards being a catechist.
Besides self-development, we were also taught how to fully utilize the manuals. “Call to Faith” by Susana Huang was conducted for the Primary level while “Thomas Zanzig” by Bernard Wee was conducted for the Secondary level.
The concluding talk, “Stone by Stone: Building up the Youth for Ministry” by Keenan Tan was a vivacious one with the empowering aim of keeping the youth in our church. Similar to a symbiotic relationship, Keenan outlined how the Youth Ministry and the Catechetics Office could complement each other in achieving its aim in building the parish community. The sharing session with Father John Paul that followed soon after was especially fruitful as there were productive exchanges of ideas and feedback for further improvements.
Talks and workshops aside, there were no reservations when catering to our need for fun and laughter. Our stay at the YWCA Fort Canning Lodge was pleasant, to say the least – panoramic views of Orchard Road and Fort Canning Park from our rooms were treats for our eyes; Meals at the hotel were always enjoyable, with tea and light snacks provided in between talks over and above buffet breakfasts, lunches and dinners.
The second night of the conference saw the catechists treated to a fun-filled dining experience at Coca Restaurant, with no shortage of wine and delectable steamboat. Laughter and smiles were abundant as we all took the chance to sit back and relax with our fellow catechists.
Following a sumptuous dinner, we were whisked away to
Overall, the catechists’ conference has been a rather successful one. On behalf of all the catechists and myself, I wish to take this opportunity to thank our spiritual director Father John Paul, our catechist coordinator, Agatha Cheong and our recreation coordinator, Priscilla Wee and all those who have helped out in one way or the other for dedicating their time and effort in making the conference a resounding success.
