Whiling away the time, as I wait for my bedsheets to dry in the laundry room upstairs. Yes I actually changed my bedsheets! Practicing good hygiene even when I'm overseas. :)
Just arrived from Singapore today. Already feeling homesick, and I think its made worse by how sleepy I am. Still, I tell myself that I'm lucky enough (maybe even spoilt) to be allowed to buy an air ticket just to go home to celebrate CNY. And also if all the other exchange students can deal with being away from home for a semester, I can too. I can't imagine how those people on exchange for 1 year deal with it. And there's also tons of people studying full-time overseas. I'm glad that although my JC self was really sorely tempted to study overseas, some modicum of self-awareness in me made me change my mind at the end. Thirdly, I've counted, and there's roughly only 12 weeks left in Hong Kong, which sounds long, but if you lose yourself in it, it could really feel quite fast. Fourthly, I think I will get busy soon so I won't really have time to be homesick, I think. Fifthly, when I think of how I would be like if I hadn't gone for exchange, I think I'd rather be here, in Hong Kong.
Well, 17 minutes left for the dryer to be done, so this is a good time to let my thoughts wander. I'll elaborate on the 5th point. I think pre-exchange, there was a part of me that was maybe a little hollow. You know, the human mind is very complex, and so is the human body. You cannot make it do the same things for a prolonged period of time. That was exactly what I had been doing: studying all day, and just studying law. And yes, I had free time to myself, but even those fun times started to seem monochromatic, after all mental stress I put myself through. I don't think my mental health was at its best in the semesters pre-exchange.
Now, I feel like I've gained an additional perspective on life and the world, which is valuable, and is still changing as I live my life here. I can't put it adequately into words, but I'll do my best. I feel like firstly, I've learnt to be more dreamy, less serious about work and more serious about what I truly like to do. It's important to keep in mind the things you truly like to do, and the things that make you you, because it's what keeps you going everyday. Secondly, I've learnt to appreciate the humdrum everyday things in life, and how lovely my home and Singapore are. It's because over here, I do everything myself, and there's so much more gratification and awareness from doing it myself. And appreciation for how my mum has done it for us all these years. Thirdly, I learnt to balance my negative attitude towards people with a positive one, and I think they come together nicely to produce a well-balanced cynicism. I hope it is well-balanced. Anyway, one always strives to achieve that balance, and one is always learning how to. Fourthly, I've realized that spending too much time inside one's head is not good, so with that, I'll end my post and go collect my laundry.