30 October 2006: Seeking in Life

All this while, we have been growing up in a society that views failures as spectacles of amusement, not as sources of courage and inspiration. This impression imprinted upon us by the society had numbed our hearts, inhibiting our innate ability to feel and be moved. In our endless pursuit for seemingly impossible goals in life, we become oblivious to our surroundings, and there is little else in life besides excelling by the standards of the successful few in society. However, is making loads of cash what we want in life? Do glory and prestige really matter so much?

Simply put, the real aim of university students mugging so hard for good grades is to secure a decent income or job later in life, and perhaps to own a successful career that draws green faces from all around them. Frankly speaking, how many of us truly feel excited and passionate about what we are currently studying? It may be true that by achieving terrific grades, we can fulfil our respective ambitions, but many things must have been compromised on this path to satisfy material desires.

Edison and Einstein had never performed well in school. Bill Gates never made it to Harvard. Our very own Sim Wong Hoo is a polytechnic graduate. I doubt many of them had ever envisioned the day when they would succeed in life. Most were simply following their hearts' desires.

Universities from all over the world churn thousands of graduates out annually, but we don't see thousands of Bill Gates and friends every year. That is, if success is defined in material terms. What is success in your eyes? What do you want your life to be? What do you really want?