And yet, it doesn't feel like just a week. It's been an immensely different and unusual week for me, but when I come back and ask people what I've missed, life pretty much has been just as mundane as it has been for the civilians back home that I communicate with. The thought of it having been another mundane week can't seem to fully register.

Moving on, self-censorship is in place for all recruits for it's own reasons, and all I'd say here is that perhaps the best thing about BMT is that I always am able to enjoy the view of a sunrise without fail. Sure, it's fleeting because one can't stop to smell the flowers when standing at attention, but the view is nonetheless there, and to get up at 4:30 means you can't possibly miss out on another nice sunrise for a new packed day.

***

I read the newspapers today, and there was an article by this guy who wrote a book on a fictional person returning to Singapore and struggling to accept certain changes that have been made to the country, both physically and culturally. The dynamism of the Singaporean landscape that he touched on reminded me of my initial thoughts during one particular day in BMT.

Recruitment talks by the Army, RSAF and Navy were all being conducted for young recruits that day, whose shaved heads, uniform brown admin tee and similar expressions never fail to cast an image of complete synchronisation when seen in a lecture theatre. When the topic of long-term commitments was brought up, along with all the videos of grown men serving the nation, I couldn't help but feel I wasn't ready to leave my childhood self behind. This is not just about the SAF and how it molds you, but to go out and work, or to even enter the University was something that at that point in time, I just didn't feel prepared for mentally.

Eventually, though, I got over the sentiment when I told myself that such changes don't take place overnight, and no one expected me, nor any 18-year old to transit from their childhood into adulthood with complete ease and efficiency. Such changes take time, and because they do, the transition is less foreign and more benign. Nonetheless, the fact is that we've passed a certain point in our lives that we won't be able to relive as easily. Everyone's got new boots to fill, both literally and figuratively. With jobs and a new environment unlike our previous 18 years, it's really about time to move along.

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