Goodbye Sheares Hall, the place I called ‘home’ for the past academic year.
A lesson I’ve learned about home.
A dream home doesn’t have to be a bungalow filled with swimming pools, bowling alleys, and more amenities than one could need. You don’t need a penthouse, 10,000 square feet, or a balcony that stretches out far and wide. A home is a lot more than the superficial. It’s a place of safety, security, comfort, and peace. A place you go to at the end of an exhausting day and immediately feel relaxed. A place without judgment, and where you can let your mind rest and be at ease. Even if that’s a small little room at the corner of NUS.
I’m not someone that has a large amount of attachment to Sheares Hall as some of my other graduating schoolmates. I didn’t join many events or CCAs, nor have I really made a lot of friends that would honestly persist past this graduation from the hall. But I would be lying if I said that 3 of the 4 years I’ve stayed here haven’t impacted me in a large way.
There are a few things I would miss.
The peaceful and quiet nature of Pasir Panjang.
Communal living with the few close friends I’ve taken away.
The subtle chirping of birds nestled on the roof (although I won’t miss the bird poop), and the gentle breeze that flows through the corridor of the rooftop floor that I stayed on. The idea of having the beautiful campus of NUS like my own backyard.
The low-rise buildings nestled around the area, giving me an unobstructed view of the sky in its entirety. As you can tell, this allowed me to experience some magnificent sunsets over the past 10 months.
But what I will miss the most would be having this space I could call mine, even if it was just for a short 10 months.
A place I could feel safe in, a space where I could do anything I wanted. A small little room where I could feel at peace. At home. And if this is a teaser of what owning my own place feels like, consider me motivated in wanting to achieve that sooner rather than later.
Goodbye Sheares.
Thank you for the lessons learned, the people I’ve met, the tranquility you’ve given me, and the motivation you’ve sparked inside of me.
