Nostalgia.

I have had about 4 blogs ever since I was introduced to social media, and over the span of almost a decade, I have written hundreds of blog posts. And I remember many a time when I wrote about nostalgia. It's such a cliche topic, sometimes I decide to close the webpage in the midst of drafting a post. But tonight, nostalgia hits again, in a strangely warming-your-heart-and-making-it-fuzzy way. 

A friend showed me a video of my Junior College (link: https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10153421830145492). I'm a sucker for tribute videos of ANY sort, and even the smallest prompts can bring about a huge wave of memories being unlocked for a super long time. I planned to watch like one minute of the video but I couldn't stop until the end. And as scene after scene of familiarity flashed before me, I sunk deeper and deeper into this pond of nostalgia. I miss SRJC. But then again, I miss my secondary school, SACSS. And turning the clock even earlier than that, I miss my primary school, SACPS, even. 

I happened to watch another music video about growing up. It was filmed in such a moving way I couldn't help but be totally captured by it. Growing up is mundane, especially when you're living life in the moment. (Like right now, I'm typing this and 10 seconds have passed) You don't think much of it, but as time passes, and time seems to pass the fastest when you don't pay attention to it, you will one day look back suddenly and realize, what has happened? The classroom you once hated so much and couldn't wait to get out of, now becomes a memorial site where you look back on precious school day memories fondly. You walk past the bus stop where you waited for the school bus at 6am every morning ten years ago, sleepy-eyed and cursing the fact that you were awake at such ungodly timings. Now, it is half past twelve in the afternoon, the bus stop is empty, all the kids are currently in school. Momentarily, you are transported back to the past, where the sky is still dark, lights from the lamppost above seem exceptionally bright, the road is quiet except the occasional  car zooming past. You eat your breakfast of kaya bread while waiting for the stupid school bus, wishing it wouldn't come so you can run home, jump into bed and sleep for a few more hours. But you know that doesn't happen, and as the bus arrives, you board it bleary-eyed, sighing at the thought of spending the entire day in school. 

We wanted so much to grow up and grow out of school. But when we finally do leave school, we look back at those unbearable years and suddenly wonder why we didn't make the best of it then. I used to roll my eyes at people who reminded me time and again to treasure my school days, because you will never get them back. Stop being so sappy, I thought. But tonight, that video has unbelievably triggered off something within me and I desperately wanna return to the uncomplicated, spontaneous, youthful days. Yet I know it is impossible, unless someone builds a time machine in the near future. I think it's time to treasure each moment of our lives, before they dissolve into mere memories and slowly become forgotten over the years. Apart from that, thank God for advanced technology that can record our young and silly years. Something we can always look back to and feel fuzzy all over again is always something good, right? 

P.S I love the song in the video, why is Mayday so awesome?! *fangirls