First Quarter

How time flies; in a blinking of an eye we've come to the end of March,
having gone through the first quarter of the year.
In the past 3 months drastic changes took place in my life,
accompanied with a blend of emotions and a change of mindset.
Some of the most important choices of my life were made in the past three months;
right now, I am living on the consequences of some of these decisions that were proven to be too idealistic at times.

In just three months I experience a change in my lifestyle and environment;
formerly a normal salaried worker at a cozy little supermarket,
I soon find myself in one of the nation's top institution,
and I have to admit that till now I'm still having problems trying to adapt to such changes.
There's also a drastic change in the type of people I work with and come across;
formerly only ordinary people from the neighbourhood whom most are easy to understand,
now I'm face off with some of the country's elite whose thoughts are actions are unpredictable.
The sudden change in environment stripped me of the usual optimism and happy-go-lucky attitude,
leaving me to find my way out alone in this unfamiliar environment.

In everything we do, I believe that the first step is always the hardest;
right now, I'm facing with the usual struggle that one would face when there's a shift in the equilibrium of life,
but this time round everything seems so much tougher, so much unpredictable,
and every wrong step come at a larger consequence.
No longer is this the usual protective environment that I'm used to for 4 years of secondary education;
the people here are never genuinely to help,
nor do the people here forgive and forget easily,
and neither do the people put others before themselves in all situation.

While I recall of the days whereby I undergone some of the toughest days of my life,
I realized that those days were nothing, really nothing,
compared to the situation of the current reality.
At the very least, primary school was all a breeze;
in secondary school you had all those kind souls who are willing to lend a helping hand whenever a stranger needs one,
and a second chance is always given whenever you've done something presumably wrong.
These days, people do not give a thought about others, and the stereotype they give are there forever.

I wonder if all the kind souls are just yet to be identified,
or are all of them gone for good.

Grumbling and nagging are inevitable at the start of everything;
isn't that what we do all the time when there's a change being made?
But well, facing off with another tidal wave of life, this time of a larger magnitude,
one can't help but feel insecure and worried and afraid.
Having gone through phases of life that confuses one at the start and led one to emerge victorious at every end,
how I wish this would be the case for whatever that I'm undergoing now.

Lagging behind in academics, not having a healthy social life;
sometimes I just wish that all these are just another test of my endurance,
and I will survive and emerge champion by the end of everything.
Sometimes I don't know how am I going to deal with all the current problems;
yet when I come to recall about it, often I'm left without clear directions how to deal with problems in my life.
All the time, solutions just come to me naturally,
bringing me to where I am supposed to be.
I guess, and I hope, this time I'm at the correct location.

Now I am at the very last lap of everything;
I just hope that all's well ends well,
everything could just end with one beautiful happy ending at the last chapter.
After all, things have been like a storybook-
every saga you come across a new adventure, meet new people,
undergo new challenges, fight new enemies, learn new things...

And then you move on.

And how I hope things were just as simple as how a storybook would be.

And how I hope those people were just as simple to predict as those I've came across.

And how I hope every problem would end off with large benefits like before.

Who knows what is in the front of the path everytime?
It is only till when we walk up to it and see it for ourselves.
It might be a treasure chest; it might be a trap.
It might be everything.
There may be ambush on the sides of this path; there may be a junction ahead.
There may be anything you've never expect of.

But all I knew is, for good or bad, since this is the path I choose to take,
then, I got to accept everything that comes my way, no matter good or bad.

And I believe, there is always an alternative way out of all troubles.

And from there, life goes on.