00:57 I did it

It still feels so surreal.

Did I really manage to get 1st class honours in Economics?

It was so surreal that I went to the University House to check on my results three times yesterday! First at eleven, next at half past twelve and one more time at seven p.m.

When I first saw my name on the list, I didn't know how to react. I didn't cheer/scream/squeal like I did when I got my A level results. I just remember my heart beating a little fast and my limbs feeling a little numb.

Right now, I'm even scared to blog about it because I'm afraid I might jinx it somehow.

Isn't it a bit silly of me?

I know I wanted a 1st class really badly, but I wasn't really sure if my efforts were enough to get me one.

I've also collected the feedback for my final year project. The project I worked painstakingly for 6 months. There were times where I was so demotivated that I just wanted to finish it off hastily- but I'm glad I didn't. Hard work really does pay off!

Those sleepless nights, endless library sessions all seem so worthwhile now.

Although I know academics isn't everything, I still can't help but demand myself to do well. It definitely doesn't mean that those who didn't manage to get a satisfactory grade are any less smart than me. I've always believed that grades aren't everything.

I still keep the words of Col. A. in mind. When we first got the scholarship, he said 'Don't think you're better than those who didn't get it. They could well surpass you in the future. That's what usually happens.'

I know he didn't say it to put us down. He wanted to keep us grounded and remind us to be humble at all times.

So for today and the days that follow, I will still keep his words deeply etched in my mind. I know there will be a lot more challenges in the working world and I still have a lot, a lot more to learn.

S.N. and I talked about how some people change when they step into the working world.

What kind of changes? Well, we think that sometimes, they change for the worse.

I don't know what it is about the so-called 'reality' that forces people to discard their values... perhaps it isn't as bad as we think. Maybe we've been watching too much dramas (hehe)

I just hope that no matter where I go or what I become, I will never forget my core values and what truly matters to me at the very beginning.