CK retreat 2008

i was at ck retreat for 19hs, but i only slept 2.5hs. i was there on thurs from 3pm to fri 10.30am. and i was awake from thurs 3pm to 11.59pm, and then on fri from 12mn to 6am. then i slept for 2.5hs and then got up at 8.30am. so daring huh, i dared to sleep 2.5 hs despite the busy day i had on fri. well, let me recount the proceedings of the camp.

on the way there, i still remember being really anxious about missing the bus stop. hui qi and elisa had kindly volunteered to wait on me at the bus stop. however, i was still very worried about missing the right stop. so at every bus stop, i bent forward to look out for them. i did this so often that the bus driver noticed my perpetual motion and made the effort to come up to me (i was sitting behing the alighting door) and asked me where i was going. i told him and he said that he would tell me when to alight. whoa. to me, he was like an angel sent by God, to ease my fears.

when i reached, elisa and huiqi helped me with my bag and directed me to the chalet. i arrived in time for pastor lau's workshop.

pastor lau's workshop was a lot relaxed. he read from the scripture then asked us to break up into groups to fill in the discussion form. i was assigned to group 1 by iva and was requested to facilitate. so i did. (btw, group 1 consisted of isa, noelene, huiqi, marcus and iva(only for discussion)) we discussed about the definition of a stranger and talked about lazarus and the rich man, about who made earth his home etc. it was really fruitful. after the discussion, pastor lau, ever readily demonstrated to us his puzzle, this time, everyone had a copy of a puzzle and thus we could do it hands on. i learnt how to bring the bead over through er jie, but im not sure if i can do it again.

after the demonstration. we went to the beach to build sand castles. the objective was to build the tallest and prettiest sand castle. my group came up with a plan to create a mound first, then work on the aesthetics. so we started building a hill of sand, after about 10 mins, we worked on the design. i went around looking for sticks and leaves while the others designed the sand. when i came back, i designed a gate and a bridge over the moat. it was truly a fun experience, and it was the first time i received some genuine positive remarks about my designing capability. (i want to be an architect when i grow up, remember?)

finally, sand castle time came to a close. we went back to the chalet, showered. then the girls played cluedo while the guys played risk. we were not allowed down by the camp committee as they were preparing the special dinner. finally, when the special dinner was ready, we went down and we found out that we had fruits and cream soup for our special dinner. i found that really creative as never in camps did i have this kind of meal. plus the place was candle lit as we ate. it was a truly fun dining experience. after the fruits, we had pizza.

after dinner, it was movie screening time, unfortunately, the computer could not project the volume of the video, thus, we decided to play captain's ball. captain's ball was fun! throughout the game, i was mainly running about, trying to get the ball, or to create holes in the opponents defense. i realised im quite a good shooter, i mean i can shoot high and quite accurately. or maybe the opponent's goalkeeper was plain lazy to jump. haha. it was a very fast paced game for 45 mins. afterwhich, everyone, all worked out and sweaty gathered in the bungalow to play some circle games. like chop chili chop chili chop chop chop, o-gak! diu diu, small fish, big fish etc. it was really good way for us to chill and prepare for the night games that were to last till sunrise. moments later, the committee was still busy preparing for the games, so we played mafia. it was as expected, fun.

at around 12 plus, the first official game of the night kicked off. it was the pass-the-fishball-with-(shorter than usual)sataysticks-in-your-mouth challenge, of course, without the use of the hands. in our groups, we had to pass fishballs down the line and eat them up once we were done with the passing. that included those that had dropped. this game really tested your lower jaw muscles to the limits as we had to prop the satay sticks up to receive the fishball from the previous person as part of strategy. my throat was stretched and my jaw ached, thanks to this game. my group came in 2nd and we ate all the fishballs, we didnt care if they had dropped, we were game!

next up, the rock-climbing game. this game was rather creative to me. the rock wall we had to scale was not vertical nor diagonal. instead, it was on the ground, with tape as the markers. but dont think it was easy! we had to do this as a group, with our legs tied up with the person beside us. we had to finish 'climbing' the wall as soon as possible, of course with minimal pain at the ankles where the rafia string was placed. group 3 went first because they came first in the fishball game. they went slow and steady, obviously putting comfort over desire to win, they completed in 5 mins. my group was next. before it was our turn, we had ourselves lined up from tallest to shortest and had over-enthusiastically tied ourselves up. when it came to our turn, we realised that we had to hop as one group to the start line. we were quite malu-ed by that. when iva started the timer, all of us immediately got down on our hands, unaffected by the gravel and dirt. we pushed through all the challenges of overstretched limbs and bones and managed 3 minutes! it was a great accomplishment! lastly, group 2 went, i say they really charged forward, dragging their legs along, as if they didnt care as much whether their lags would scar afterward. and they finished in 1 min!!! quite impossible lol.

the next game was milo the hero! this game was gross but at the same time, fun. the game consists of 3 stations, at which only one person could be at one at any point of time. at the first station, the player had to obtain some water to be sustained in the mouth, then at the second station, the player had to pour in some milo powder into the mouth(with the water still there). then juggle a few times before releasing mixture into a 2 litre bottle. this had to be done continuously by different people in the group until after 5 mins. and the forfeit for the losing team was the most terrifying of all games that i had played in my life. that was to drink up half of what they had contributed. (ew! imagine all the saliva and all!) before the game, i ensured that everyone in my group wasnt afraid of others' saliva. then we proceeded to the game. we play our hearts out. we placed meticulousness above speed. and that paid off! after 3-4mins, our bottle was filled to the brim and overflowing while the other groups' bottles were merely half full. while my group was beaming pride and glee that this cup was pass from us, the other groups were anticipating which between them was more unfortunate. but good news to all! iva announced that the forfeit was just a scare for us to take part actively in the game. thus, there was no punishment.

after the milo game, it was the blindfold game. i was the guide, so i didnt blindfold. i had to lead my group through a miniature obstacle course and after that, i would be blind folded and have to choose a number. i would say i lead my group well. then i had to be blindfolded, i went through the course fine, then i choose no. 2, iva asked me to choose another no. so i chose 3. then she said okay and led me to a container and asked me to dip me hand in and search for a pebble. haha, i really didnt noe what was inside, so i felt through and through, squishing my fingers around, after several failed attempts, i finally found something hard. that's it! it was the pebble. when i took out the blindfold. i just realised that i had been through fear factor without knowing. it was a bucket full of meal worms. u noe those 'darling wriggleys' that u give to ur fish. iva said i rubbed and rubbed them through. haha, too bad, i didnt feel like vomiting, since i was passed being able to. iva told me not to breathe a single word to the next 'victim' of this torment. haha. next was noelene, like me, she somehow chose 3. and the meal worms welcomed her, but she was smart, she suspected something, unlike i, who was so gullible (i think i squished them! eeew!) btw, choice 1 was something (i forgot), choice 2 was some hokkien mee looking mixture which looked quite gross too, choice 4 was the saliva+milo+water from the previous game, with egg this time. oh man, i wouldn't have minded the other options, but why 3?! anything but alive and wriggley worms! my team members passed this station like a breeze, but somehow, station 3 was always busy! was this the devious plan by the committee?! lol!

a few minutes later, everyone retired into the chalet for a half time. we were totally grossed out by the game. some went to eat instant noodles and majority played mafia. i glad to say that i did a wonderful job as a detective one game when i took the risk to reveal the mafias, at the nick of time. the game ended in my favour!

at about 5 the comm revived us from half time with a fiery game. we had to use candles to burn the rafia sting of the opposing group. only players with lighted candles were allowed to roam about in the game area, while those whose candles had gone out had to relight them. it was a real daunting task trying to melt the rafia string as my opponents came too swift for me. but in all, i think both teams did equally. halfway through the game, a neighbour came by to complain about the noise we had be producing. after that, the committee decided to put the night games to a halt even though they had 2 more games. they gave us time to rest our tired selves.

i desperately needed rest. i rested for 2.5hs, like i said earlier. woke up at 8.30 the same morning for breakfast. breakfast was instant mee. nothing else healthier.

although ck camp drained me of strength and deprived me of my precious sleep. IT WAS A BLAST! n i got to know many people much better!!! thanks iva, claudia and hui shi for your effort! the camp was really great! :)