Chingay 2008 24 Feb, Floats at Sembawang

I hurriedly slip into my 8SAB singlet hanging over my bed as I shuffled my feet towards the door, telling my parents that Im doing down to view the floats (which they had already done so and came back) I spied my sandals in the shoe rack and quickly slip my feet into the familiar soles. I turned towards the rolling sounds of cheering n music as I moved to wait at the lift lobby. Upon entering the lift, I saw a late middle-aged man in a red-black 9Div singlet, and a little girl with her father. Though speaking in Tamil/Hindi, I could tell that the girl n her father had the same motives as I had. Giggling n urging her father, the girl passed on to me her growing enthusiasm to me, I too felt a growing sense of euphoria as the lift made its way down.

I was the 1st one out of the lift, I turned left n spied in the distance, through the multistorey carpark, the blinking lights and cheering sounds. I increased my pace to a jog towards the lights, a sense of nostalgia overwhelmed, as in the distant past, I had ran towards the same lights, the same future. As I crossed the road, I suddenly recalled the girl and her father and I turned back and saw the girl pulling her father along as she spied the same future and the father was simply buoyed as he was taken by his own future, his daughter's unbridled joy as he pick up the pace with her daughter. I hurried down the same flight of stairs in the carpark as I approached the road. With the wonders of technology today, one would think he might be watching a video instead of seeing it with his own two eyes. That was how I felt when I reached the roads. Perhaps it is this feeling that compelled people to seek the 'live' events, to be there, that sense of belonging and achievement.

The multi-coloured lights washed over my eyes as I watched. I quickly realised that I was looking at the last float, as the rest of the procession turned round the corner. With a growing sense of dread, I crossed the road packed with cars that had stopped to view the convoy. Standing in the middle divider, I wait for a chance to cross as I gauged whether can I catch up with the convoy. Upon crossing the road, I started into a run to try to catch up with convoy, fueled by a sense of longing and regret. I decided to cut through the estate,trying to catch the convoy at the next bend. As I dashed through the blocks, the lights and music faded further and further away. The stubbornness in me urged to go faster while the rational me told me to stop. I ran and ran till these two emotions met at my saddened heart. Panting with exertion, I stood and watched people heading for their homes having been there earlier. I admired them for they got wat they wanted whilst a young man grasped at fleeting desires. Dejected I headed for home, as I wondered how many of these lost moments had I gotten.....