Hi Guides!
Last Saturday, our whole 团 headed to Pasir Ris Park for a mass beach clean-up. In collaboration with People’s Association (PA) Water Venture, Girl Guides Singapore aims to instill in our Guides the awareness on how important marine life is and why they need to be protected, as part of the annual World Thinking Day Celebrations this year, with the theme of ‘Impact’. After which, we proceeded to Passion Wave @ Marina Bay, for the main programme. Here are some reflections from the Guides :-)
Reflection from a Year 1:
I feel that World Thinking Day had a great and meaningful impact on me as I made more friends and knew more about the seniors in my patrol. Through the activities at Pasir Ris Park, I bonded with my new friends as we went around picking up litter and trash, while having fun at the same time. I remember thinking how there were lots of inconsiderate people who threw their rubbish everywhere without care and concern for others. I sympathized with the cleaners who had to go around, bending down and cleaning up after others, despite some of them being elderly people. Having experienced the soreness in my back and my arms that was caused by my continually bending over to pick up rubbish, first-hand, I now understand how hard and tiring it is to have such a job, especially when the salary is meagre. I have also learnt many new things from when we were gathered at Passion Wave @ Marina Bay, including the guiding spirit. I also had the chance to interact with my patrol mates and batchmates, which helped me to get to know them better. I think that this experience had a positive impact on me as it helped me better understand my CCA and my patrol mates, as well as the struggles of others.
Reflection from a Year 2:
The World Thinking Day programme started off with a clean-up at the beach. We were paired up and each pair was given a pair of tongs and a rubbish bag. We found a great deal of rubbish, some of which were common items used for picnics such as styrofoam and plastic cutlery, cups and plates. These had most probably been left behind by people who had a picnic there and my batchmates and I thought that it was really inconsiderate of them to leave so much rubbish behind. Apart from those items, we also found other miscellaneous items such as combs and broken tent pegs. It was surprising to see those at the beach. When we were about to leave the beach, I saw a plastic bag fly right into the sea, too far for us to retrieve. It was rather saddening as that plastic bag will contribute to water pollution and may potentially cause the deaths of marine animals and yet we could not do anything about it. Through this clean-up, I am sure that we would think twice about leaving rubbish behind, the next time we are in public areas like the beach. I am happy to have taken part in such a meaningful activity. Afterwards, we went to Passion Wave @ Marina Bay for the celebration. There were many Guides from other schools present so the place was rather crowded. We also had President Halimah Yacob with us at the celebration, as the Guest-of-Honour and it was really surreal to see her in person. The performances went on but as we were sitting quite far back, we were unable to see the performances clearly which was quite a pity. The number of Guides present was astonishing and the idea that all around the globe, Guides from different countries are all celebrating World Thinking Day together on this day, is hard to believe. I am happy to have taken part in this year's World Thinking Day celebration.
Reflection from a Year 3:
First, we went to the beach for our beach clean up. We were given trash bags and metal tongs to pick up the rubbish that was littered around the beach. It was quite fun as the weather was cooling and the scenery was very nice! It felt rather fulfilling to be spending my Saturday morning doing something more meaningful than usual; being with all the Guides from our school and picking up litter together. We even saw Guides and Brownies from other schools and I felt a sense of togetherness as we worked to clean up the beach. Afterwards, we headed to Passion Wave @ Marina Bay to celebrate World Thinking Day. It was quite exciting as the President herself came and I really enjoyed myself, singing all the Guides songs with all the Guides from different schools all over Singapore. I really like this year’s theme, ‘Impact’, as I think it is a really good theme that signifies what Guides aim to do and what Guides aim to change around the world. All in all, I really enjoyed the World Thinking Day celebration and I hope that we can participate in more of such events to connect with Guides from other schools as well. :)
Reflection from a Year 4:
For the first part of the World Thinking Day celebrations, we went to Pasir Ris Park to clean up the beach. Initially, I was reluctant and unenthusiastic about it, as the activity was carried out early in the morning, but I soon warmed up to the idea after seeing the amount of trash we picked up. Though it was a short two hours, and more litter would likely dirty the beach after we leave, I was glad to have made an effort to keep the park clean, even if it was only for a short while. Afterwards, we went to Passion Wave @ Marina Bay and joined other schools in celebrating World Thinking Day. Overall, I think the activities were really meaningful in bringing out ‘Impact’ — this year's theme — and they have inspired me to make an impact in the ways I can.
All in all, it was a rather meaningful event for all of us and we would like to thank the planning committee for spending time and effort to plan and execute this event! :)
Published By:
Arielle
49th Batch Secretary
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