I've recently reconnected back with a primary friend of mine.
Sheng and I had a great time chillin and chattin with him and his girlfriend.
As fun as it would seem, I've made an observation, or it would be more of a speculation.
I look back and pictures of all my friends in primary and secondary school begin to float up in my mind.
Everybody has got an awfully prideful chin!
This obsession on pride was first made clear to me when a friend of mine told me that I am a prideful girl.
After thinking this through, I kindda agree with that, what's wrong with having a little pride, right?
But as we were having our late night coffee/alcohol chat, I blurted out something which had been stuck in my mind for quite sometime.
"I think our school produced a lot of prideful kids"
Sad to say, my friend's girlfriend said that many kids from other places say that this fact is, indeed, true.
Which bring me to my next question.
Why...
Kids from our school, they lived a life where the social status quo is divided into those who are
- Perfects (being active in sports, co-curriculum and had excellent grades and coincidentally handsome or pretty - highly popular),
- Populars (God blessed faces or body which made many fall from head to toes for them - wildly popular)
- Nerds (had excellent grades - respected by friends [only in specific situations])
- Actives (as in being active in co-curriculum, being head or leaders of organizations or uniform bodies - popular & busy)
- Quiets (the silent ones in class - form groups of own support and choose to not meddle with other kids)
- Weirds (spend time with their own obsession, computer geeks, anime fans - live life within their own circle, does not care of other's perspective)
- Outcasts (people who just doesn't get along well with others, they struggle to gain acceptance - needless to say, others would treat them in a way that is unfair or just plain ignore them)
I wouldn't say all of it is true, but I tried to stick to my observation. (excuse the lame naming I gave to each categories; if I may have offend you, meh)
But I've notice, whichever categories one may fall into, much of them had this pride in themselves that made them stayed in that particular category they were in.
It was not that pride was an issue then, but pride did played a role in shaping our school's students.
Being one from the many-attention-given-to school, students enroll in this school with a result cut-off.
Meaning, only good students can enter our school.
With that, came pride; it became the basic requirement to enter our school, which is sad but not surprising.
I think back on many different faces of friends I know, I almost always notice that they talk with their chin up (I know it is logic that we can't talk without the chin being up, doi)
Chin up hence refers to that particular posture where you are comfortable and confident on what you are trying to say.
As now with achievements measurable and fame & glory only so easy to get via hot social networks, it's only normal that people had many reasons to be proud of themselves.
I believe I am rightfully prideful, same goes to Sheng, my parents, my brothers, my family and my friends.
People have a chin which tells it all, and I believe everybody has got a prideful chin!
JCG
