ENGLISH LANGUAGE CLUB YEARBOOK SESSION 2020/2021

“You-u can’t lea-v-e me......not-t right no-w-w, what happen-ed-d to
forev-er? I can’t los-e-e you...I ca-a-n’t...”, sobbed Cormack.

“I’m so-orr-y... m-y-y love...so...s-so...so-r-ry... I lo-v-e-e you m-y da-

arlin-g one...I’ll alwa-y-ys be in her-e-e...”, gasped Celeste weakly as
she raised her blood-stained hand to his heart. She gave Cormack

one last smile and she stopped breathing. Cormack roared in

despair as he began to sob uncontrollably.



The sun rose over the horizon, illuminating the rubbles of the half-

destroyed palace. Celeste and many others who fell during the
battle were laid to rest just behind the palace’s garden. As the

years passed, Cormack often thought of Celeste. His pain and loss,
so bad that he had never felt anything like that before. Selene

soon grew into a beautiful young lady and as she grew, she is the

perfect resemblance of Celeste and new companion as well as
daughter to Cormack.

“Oh, my darling queen, how I’ve missed you so much... if only you
were here, enjoying our time together with our precious

daughter...”










































48

My Favourite Place


Written by: Tan Yen Lynn


There is bound to be a special place in everyone’s heart, and I am no

exception.
My favourite and special place is a beach where I can watch the sunset.

Though I have only been there once with my niece, It has become a
favourite place in my heart. I would never ever find a place like that

again.



“Come with me Aunty! I’m bringing you to somewhere special.” A small
childish voice said as I felt a small hand tugging mine.

Amelia, my niece, was barely ten years old, but she was a precocious
little child, always inquisitive and full of exuberant energy. As a baby,

she had wailed and screamed, determined to be taken out from the
confines of her cot, I knew she would grow up to be a bright child. I
wished that I could see her face but it was impossible-I am blind.



“Where are you taking me? Are you sure your mother would approve of

this?” I asked as we stumbled over some soft ground. I could feel us
moving against the hard and rocky path. Much as I was worried for her

safety, I was also intrigued. What was so special about the place we
were heading to?

“Don’t worry Aunty. I’m bringing you to the most beautiful place on
earth. It is really magical,” she replied as she continued to move on
hastening her pace.




Somehow, Amelia did not ever seem to mind that I was blind. She
would always describe her day and adventures in school, gossiping
about the affairs of her friends and teachers to me. She never failed to

make me feel that I was normal like her. I felt as though I was living her
life when she told me those stories of hers.



“Here we are, Aunty! Can’t you smell the sea in front of you? It is the

most beautiful place with the deepest blue water in the world. Picture
it: it is calm and tranquil now, but you know that it can rage so violently

during a storm.”






49

My mind sought to conjure up the images she had just described so
vividly.

“The sun is almost setting and its rays are glinting off the water like many
sparkling diamonds. Over there in the horizon is a little boat with a cute

little sail… I don’t believe it! There are people waving at us! Let’s wave
back, Aunty, otherwise, they’ll think that we’re unfriendly people!” Amelia

prompted enthusiastically.
Even though I had never seen the sea or the sun before, I could feel the

salty tang of the sea breeze assailing my nostrils and I could bask in the
warmth of the setting sun on my uplifted face. Gigantic waves crashed on

the rocks around us in a pandemonium of sounds.
Standing on the softness of the sand, I grasped Amelia’s hand and

asked,” Tell me more about what you see, Amelia. Is the view really as
splendid as I think it is?”



“Oh Aunty! The sky is filled with so many colours which are constantly

changing.



There is a streak of purple at the fringe of the sun. the sun itself is turning
into a dark crimson red as half its body sinks slowly into the sea. Some of

the stars are out, twinkling merrily like little Christmas light in the sky. I
think the seagulls are rushing home because they seem to be diving

around madly. It is as if they are doing one last dance before the sun
goes down.”

It did not matter that I did not know what the colour purple was nor what
a seagull looked like; somehow I could feel Amelia’s youthful exuberance

painting the images in my mind which had always been shrouded in
darkness. I could feel the air around me dancing to the song of nature, a

harmonious display of nature’s splendour. It touched my heart and for
the first time in my life, I knew what beauty was.



“Aunty, did I say anything wrong? Why are you crying?” Amelia’s voice

sounded
worried.

“No, Amelia. You’ve done nothing wrong. It is truly a beautiful place that
you have brought me to.”







50

Creepy Crawlies


Written by: Pang Wilson



Lena Holmes, a model, was offered a part in a movie, and she found
stardom.

As is common, fame and fortune can make significant changes in a
person's personality. So it was with Lena Holmes. She became difficult

to work with and bullied everyone with whom she worked. Lena wanted
her body, from her face to her toes, perfect. So, she hired a chemist to
create shampoo, creams for her face, her neck, her arms, and every

other place where skin could be seen.
Once a week, Lena went to an upscale beauty salon to have her hair

shampooed meticulously coiffured by Carol, the only person she would
allow near her hair. "Miss Holmes, I don't understand it. I poured some

of your special shampoo on your hair, but it won't lather. It's as though I
just poured water on your hair."

"What!" Lena growled, jumped out of the chair, wrapped a towel around
her head, rushed to her car, and sped off to her chemist "When she

arrived at the chemist's lab, she barged in, startling Dr. Fine. "Ms.
Holmes. Wha…"

"You're a fraud. A charlatan. I paid you a fortune for this shampoo, and
it doesn't lather!" she screamed pointing the bottle at his face. Lena
walked back and forth in front of the chemist, who sat at his desk and

watched her as she paced and ranted. If I had a gun, I'd…"
"Ms. Holmes, I don't appreciate your insults or your threats. I should

kick you out of here right now, but I won't. I don't know what went
wrong with the formula, but I'll find out. Now, leave and don't come

back."
"I won't, you crook. I ought to sue you!" she hissed and stormed out of

his lab.
"Miserable pest. Spoiled brat. I want to be around when age turns her
into a prune. I want to see her fall apart. Now, let's look at the

shampoo," he said through clenched teeth. He dropped a dollop of the
shampoo on a glass slide and looked at it through his microscope.

Hmm. Interesting. One element has degraded. I can fix it," he said, went
to his refrigerator and took out a jar, removed the cap, and poured

about an ounce into the shampoo.





51

Next, he went to his incubator and took out a small bottle that was
filled with green liquid, and went to his work place. He held the small
bottle up to the light and smiled. I wish I could be there to see it," he

said, took the cap off the bottle of shampoo, and poured the contents

of the small bottle into it. Then, he screwed the cap back on the bottle
of shampoo, shook it several times, and held the bottle up to the light.
For a few seconds, he allowed himself to savour this moment of

Schadenfreude. "Yeah. I'd love to see this."

The shampoo was hand-delivered the next morning. "Good. Just in
time. I have an appointment to have my hair washed and styled." In
order to be sure that her hair was receiving the attention she

demanded, she went to her exclusive beauty salon.

"Ms. Holmes, how nice to see you. Come with me and I'll wash your
hair."
"Here's my shampoo, Carol," she said curtly and gave her the bottle.

Lena sat in the shampooing chair and put her head back on the

contoured sink. Carol wet her hair, poured some of Lena's shampoo
on her head, and gingerly massaged her head. "Is this new shampoo?
The suds are luxurious, so smooth," gushed Carol. Carol rinsed her

hair, covered her hair with a towel, and led her to a chair. "How would

you like me to style your hair?"
"Just take about a half inch off the bottom"
After Carol had finished, she used mirrors to show Lena what she did.

"Looks fine. Thank you Carol," she said, paid her, left the salon, and

went home. It was late, so she made herself a sandwich, watched TV
for a while, and then went to bed. She was very tired, so she fell right
to sleep. During the night, she tossed and turned. After tossing and

turning for four hours, she suddenly awoke, looked at her hands and

sheets and blanket, and saw that they were covered with blood.
"Oh, my God! What's happening?" she hollered and put her hands to
her head.

"My head's bleeding," she gasped and fainted.














52

While she was unconscious, microscopic parasites, which Dr. Fine put
in her shampoo, crawled through her hair, eating her hair as they
went. After her hair was gone, they burrowed into her scalp. By

morning, the parasites had burrowed deeper into her scalp, eaten

her brain, and moved through her body eating as they went. Medical
Examiners, after they performed an autopsy and finally discovered
the cause of her death, agreed that there was no way of knowing

how she became a host for the parasites.









































































53

The Cure


Written by: Pang Wilson



It was a gloomy day in Labis, Johore where the sky was grey with cloud
cover, and the air thick with humidity. The day was slow, and so were the

people. At the train station the train screeched to a halt. The doors
opened and people shuffled on and off slowly. All except for one man

who rushed onto the train and quickly sat down, though he was in no
hurry to arrive at his destination, and wondering why he agreed to go

there in the first place.
He thought about the letter that he had received about two days ago,

wishing it had never come to him in the first place, wishing that he had
thrown it into the fire the minute it arrived. The letter was from an old
co-worker of his, his partner in the lab he used to work in. He and his

partner were both scientists and good ones too, making things that
seemed to defy the laws of science, at least the ones that people knew

of then.
He had quit, though, when his partner went too far, claiming that he

would make a medicine powerful enough to cure death itself. Beyond
the impossibility of this medicine, the man believed that stopping death

was unnatural and therefore wrong. He had gotten a job soon after
teaching people foreign languages, and hoped that all of the work he
had put into learning those languages, and all of the hours spent

studying under dim lights from sunrise to sunset would not be in vain,

he hoped he would not be the subject of this medicine because he knew
it would kill him and waste away all of the hard work he had put into his
job (either that or it would have some bizarre effect that he knew his

partner would not have created a cure for. Back when he worked in the
lab, the man had always had to make the reverse treatment for whatever

crazy concoction that his partner made).
The man had not heard from his former partner for three years (he was

quite happy about this) and was beginning to forget about his career as
a scientist. Of course, then the letter arrived completely destroying his

hope of ever forgetting about his work there.











54

Perhaps it was his study of foreign language that had brought upon the
consequence of receiving the letter. His partner spoke a different language,

a rare one spoken by very few men had studied. He found the language to
be fascinating, actually, and enjoyed teaching it most. However, the letter

had ruined his opinion about the language entirely.
The letter was rather short, but its message was enough to make the man

restless for two days worrying about meeting up with his partner again. He
knew that his partner was not mentally stable and he was very concerned

about how this supposed medicine would affect either him or his partner.
The letter when translated to English, read:

Partner, I have not heard from you in a long time, but I write to tell you an
urgent message. The medicine that I began work on three years ago is

completed. I will test the medicine upon your arrival to the lab. I need you
to play a very important role in the news about this medicine. I need you to

write describing the medicine and its purpose. I need you to describe all of
its effects in the most detailed way possible. I know that you have studied

many languages and you will be able to spread the news about this
medicine and the miracle that it is.

Charles.
The train screeched to a slow halt. People moved on and off slowly

shuffling. The man was still moving quickly his nerves getting the best of
him. The wooden floorboards of the platform creaked with every step the

man took.
He was expecting to need a map, but discovered that the way to the lab

was all too familiar to him. He took his time getting there still regretting the
decision he had made to help his partner with this ridiculous obsession of

his.
He arrived finally at the place that he had worked for ten years, but had not

seen for three years. Upon his first glance at the lab, he wondered if he had
taken a wrong turn, for the lab looked different than he had last seen it.

However, in the back of his mind, he knew he had come to the right place.















55

He opened the door with much uncertainty and regret peering into the

lab. His partner ran up to the door to greet him. “Greetings, partner, I’ve
been anxiously awaiting your arrival. Let me show you to the testing lab

and we shall begin immediately.” his partner spoke in perfect English.
This startled the man, he began to feel uneasy and wondered where his

old partner learned English, but dared not ask. He noticed that the lab
was very different, but he dared not ask about that either.

The man followed his partner through an unfamiliar doorway into an
unfamiliar room and halted at a table where his partner was standing.

His partner picked up a beaker filled with a liquid green substance that
almost appeared to be glowing. His partner spoke, in English again,

saying, “This substance will cure any sickness or disease in my body and
increase my life expectancy when I take it. I need you to write down what

you see me experience.”
The man, although still concerned about his partner, felt relieved and

grateful that he would not be the one experiencing the effects of the
medicine and was only meant to write about that which he saw.

His partner took the beaker into a clear glass room.
“When I take the medicine, you will need to quickly write about how you

see me react, and what I do and say.” his partner said.
The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a notebook and pencil

slowly, wondering what he would have to write when his partner took the
substance, hoping it would be something positive.

He watched with excitement, fear, regret, and hope as his estranged
partner poured the substance into a glass, raised it slowly to his lips with

excitement in his eyes, tipped the glass up, and drank the substance until
it was gone….

























56

Pinnochio


Written by: Muhammad Zulhilmi bin Zamri


Have you ever wondered how in the world can Pinocchio’s nose elongate
whenever he’s lying? Is it really because of the blue fairy’s magic or the

real question is, did Pinocchio lie? We’ve been told about how lonely
Geppetto was back then, with no one to talk to, so he carved a boy-

shaped wood puppet to soothe the loneliness which somehow
miraculously turned into a walking and talking puppet. “Pinocchio,” he
named it. Is it really normal to treat a talking puppet as our child without

freaking out? Why did Geppetto desperately want a child of his own in the

very first place? We all knew he’s all alone with no lover to begin with.


What if Pinocchio was actually kidnapped by Geppetto? Little did we know,

that Geppetto was indeed married but his love story ended with his Juliet
leaving him for a noble guy. She was then blessed with a child which

shocked Geppetto so much that he chose to get rid both his ex-wife and
her new husband from his sight.



e managed to dispose of those pests with no trace but how about the

child? For some reason, the eyes of the child were sparkling, as beautiful
as his mother’s, the eyes that robbed Geppetto’s heart when he saw them
for the very first time. The child resembled his mother so much that

Geppetto was left with no choice but to spare his life. He named the boy
Pinocchio. Pinocchio did look exactly like his mother where almost every

single feature of his face was identical to his mother’s except his nose. His
nose resembled his father’s nose which just grated Geppetto’s nerves. As

time went by, Pinocchio grew up to be a skinny and tiny boy just like a
puppet. He had been locked up for much of his 12-year-old life which

made him clueless about the outside world. One fine day, Geppetto gave
Pinocchio some money to buy him liquor. Pinocchio was so happy that he
could finally explore the outside world that he went into the town

excitedly.















57

He managed to dispose of those pests with no trace but how about the
child? For some reason, the eyes of the child were sparkling, as beautiful

as his mother’s, the eyes that robbed Geppetto’s heart when he saw
them for the very first time. The child resembled his mother so much

that Geppetto was left with no choice but to spare his life. He named
the boy Pinocchio. Pinocchio did look exactly like his mother where

almost every single feature of his face was identical to his mother’s
except his nose. His nose resembled his father’s nose which just grated

Geppetto’s nerves. As time went by, Pinocchio grew up to be a skinny
and tiny boy just like a puppet. He had been locked up for much of his

12-year-old life which made him clueless about the outside world. One
fine day, Geppetto gave Pinocchio some money to buy him liquor.

Pinocchio was so happy that he could finally explore the outside world
that he went into the town excitedly.



On his way to the town, he saw a fun-fair which captivated his

attention so he decided to explore the amazing fair. There, he was
unfortunately caught by a cruel man that ran a puppet show. It turned

out to be Geppetto’s friend who later phoned him to tell about his
‘son.’ Geppetto then came, grabbed Pinocchio by the collar and

dragged him back to the house. He asked about the money that he
gave to Pinocchio and Pinocchio said that he used up the money to

buy the entrance ticket for the fair. Hearing that, Geppetto was furious
so he grabbed a tool that looked like a dental extraction forcep which

he used to repair clocks. Every time Geppetto asked Pinocchio a
question and Pinocchio gave an answer which he did not believe, he

would pull his nose using the tool. Pinocchio screamed and cried for
mercy but this simply amplified Geppetto’s sadistic enjoyment of

inflicting pain. Starting from that day onwards, whenever he heard
anything that he didn’t like from Pinocchio, he would pull Pinocchio’s

nose until it elongated and looked strange as he hated that nose so
much. At last the truth has been revealed, that’s why Pinocchio’s nose

elongated whenever he told a lie.
















58

A Perfect Ending


Written by: Dhanieya Ganeish
I treaded as softly as I could. Even with my thick woolen socks, the
floorboards had the tendency of creaking under the slightest

pressure. This time I absolutely had to win. I can’t let him hear me
and catch me once again. No. This was finally the chance I had

been waiting for.


My heart was racing and I could hear the drumming of my blood. It

was deafening. I took a quiet breath and prayed he wouldn’t hear

the pounding of my tell-tale heart. I used the mahogany walls for
support to alleviate some of the pressure from my foot. The
accumulated dust caked at my fingertips and sprinkled like fairy

dust onto my black wool sweater.



“Are you even in the house? I can’t even hear you breathe. I mean I
know I said this game was to DIE for but I didn’t think you’d take it

literally.” said my seeker.



“C’mon Dee, I’m starving and this has gone on long enough. Fine, I
can’t believe I’m saying this, but I forfeit. Come on out right now
and I might even take you out for a bite.” he continued.



I hesitated for a minute.



I had waited so long for this moment. Should I give up just like

this? It didn’t feel like a victory but it had been so long since I had
left the house and I would do anything for the opportunity.



I stepped out of the shadows of the giant grandfather clock and
cleared my throat. He was so close. He had his back turned to me

and he was so near that if I put my arm out, I could touch him.



He turned around and with a giggle I fell in his arms and placed
my head right against his heart. It was beating in tune with mine. I

gave him a quick hug and a kiss on his cheek.









59

“Well, I think our silly games have gone on long enough, now don’t
think I won’t be checking in on that promise for a date night

outside. I think that Italian restaurant next to Clove’s Bakery would
be absolutely perfect.” I said with a beaming smile. A perfect ending

to a beautiful day.



My heart was beating so hard I thought it might explode.









































































60

The China Ballerina

Written by: Dhanieya Ganeish


Young Master Benedict morosely observed the slew of servants rushing

about preparing for the banquet tonight. They hauled a huge roll of red
and gold embroidered carpet, intricate and grand candlesticks and large
sweet-smelling flower arrangements. The young maids scrubbed the floor

till it gleamed and polished the wood of the furniture to a beautiful vibrant
mahogany. The windows were dusted and wiped and the entire hall

smelled of lavender he noted with dismay. In his experience the grander
the event, the more devastating the end.

In the beautiful large mansion of Beechwood, with sunlight dappling its
cream walls, vines adorning the giant pillars of its entrance and more

rooms and servants that anyone could ever keep count of, lived a very odd
young man. In line with his character, he was bestowed a strange name as
well; Benedict Bleak Barrington, Young Master of Beechwood and future

Lord Barrington. He was born to Lady Katrina who sadly passed during

birth and Lord Albert Barrington III, a duke of Your Highness court. Ever
since he was a young boy, everyone noticed there was something rather
strange about him. Every day something bleak was bound to happen in his

presence at any point, which was rather unfortunate considering Benedict
himself was a boy of sweet disposition; soft spoken, polite and kind.

However, if he had passed the garden during his walk, it was no surprise if
a tree were to lose all its leaves the next day, if he entered the kitchen,

surely not long after a small fire would break out, or someone would cut
their finger, if he walked through the hall, a piece of furniture was bound to

mysteriously break no matter how strong or solid the wood. As such, he
rarely left his room and told the servants he would handle its cleanliness
himself. He only left his room to go to the roof, where even if something

were to happen, no one would be hurt and burdened. Another exception
was his father’s office.

Despite suffering from this unknown curse his entire life, Benedict’s father
never noticed anything amiss about his son. He was convinced and firmly

rooted in the image of his son as a splendid man who could do nothing
wrong. Even if something were to happen after Benedict left his father’s

office, the old man would always blame it on the poor quality of the
furniture although everything was Prussian made. Benedict convinced his

father he was quite ill and frail to come downstairs for meals and had all his
meals sent to his room. His concerned yet unsuspecting father never once

questioned his son’s decisions and allowed him to do whatever he pleased.


61

In all the years leading up to his 20th birthday, not a single person ever
mentioned the son’s strange circumstance to his father. Alas, deception is
always unravelled in the end.

“Ah son, thank you for joining me, I have some splendid news for you,”

said Lord Barrington beaming as Benedict entered his office.
Benedict closed the door gently and slid into his chair, his kind blue eyes
observing his father’s obvious excitement, showing in his red ruddy

cheeks, a sparkle in his eyes and a smile stretched ear to ear.

“What is it Father? I gather something pleasant has happened,” said
Benedict
“Well, in honour of your 20th birthday, I’ve decided to throw a lavish ball

and I’ll invite everyone in Mayview. I’ve even extended invitations to the

fairest ladies from far far away. I figured now is a good time as any to meet
some women and show off your good looks eh!” said Lord Barrington
chuckling at his own joke, pleased with his idea.

Benedict was despaired within but outwards, he merely smiled and

thanked his father for such a gracious and loving gesture on his behalf. It
would be too late to stop the event considering the invitations had already
been sent out. He would just have to make his presence scarce at the ball

to reduce the chance of a more disastrous event from occurring.



Benedict had attended exactly 3 balls in his life before and he
remembered each of it clearly for a special reason. In the first ball, he was

merely 12 years old and spent most of the ball running around and talking

to other children. In the middle of the ball, the chandelier fell down putting
an abrupt end to the event. Fortunately, no one was hurt when it
happened. During the second and third ball, Benedict tried his very best to

stick to the wall and keep away from the crowd. A servant tripped and a
potted plant tipped off. As his disasters go, if he kept away from everyone

it wouldn’t be so bad.



One more day to go for the dreaded ball and the house was already
flooded with guests arriving in their carriages. Benedict watched everyone

coming in their grand dresses, fancy tuxedos, ridiculous hair dos and
delicate painted faces all laughing and chatting cheerfully. It might be his

birthday coming soon but it seemed like he was the only sad person in the
household. He sat on the rooftop sketching some of the guests but no one

ever looked up and saw him. As he was sketching his great aunt Mabel
with her canary blue hair, he set eyes on her.



62

She came in a carriage that had wing-like designs on its door, pulled by
two snow-white horses gracefully walking into the compound. When she

stepped out her right foot extended gracefully, pointed towards the
ground, a pale ribbon twirled around her leg till her knee. She wore a light

fuchsia dress hugging her bodice and flaring out from her waist stopping
at her knees. Her hair was a rich chestnut brown gleaming and twisted

into a small bun secured by a gold butterfly clasp. Her face was delicately
shaped with big and kind eyes, a petite nose and rosebud lips. When she

stepped on the ground, it seemed like she was floating. She gracefully
nodded at everyone around her with a small smile then suddenly she

lifted her head and looked upwards, directly at Benedict, holding his gaze
and smiling at him briefly before looking away. Benedict was completely

and utterly in awe.
An overwhelming feeling came over him and compelled him to run out to

the front door to meet her. He raced past the servants bustling in the long
corridor heading to the main hall, past his father chatting and laughing

with his friends, past a group of dolled-up women gossiping, to the main
door, all of them looking at him in bewilderment. When he reached the

front door, she was just stepping in. She gracefully walked in and gave a
Queen’s wave at everyone then she glanced at Benedict.

“Hello there birthday boy.” she said
“I-uh, well happy- I mean thank you uh hi!” he mumbled shyly.

She laughed at him, the sound of tinkling church bells, musical and
calming.

“I’ll see you around then.” she said before gliding away
Benedict nearly broke out in cold sweat. For some strange reason his

heart was racing and blood was rushing to his ears, thrumming against his
ear drums blocking out the noise of the entire hall. He had just met an

angel. Up close he could clearly see her hair tied in a bun, not a wisp out
of place, her features delicate and carved and her skin, pale and snowy

and so smooth, almost like china. Not the cheap kind, the expensive ones
his grandmother had, the china tea sets hand carved by a Chinese teapot

maker, not a blemish or a spot, curved and shaped perfectly,
heartbreakingly fragile and beautiful, much like his ballerina.



Lord Barrington good-naturedly slapped Benedict’s back

“Out to enjoy the party eh son, nice of you to join us. Grab a drink son,
today’s just a warm up for tomorrow’s big event.” said Lord Barrington

smiling widely.

63

There was a sound of something heavy hitting the ground with a loud
thump somewhere distant. The noise jolted Benedict out of his daze and

he muttered apologies to his father and stalked away quickly.
That night he would dream that he and his ballerina were dancing in the

ballroom to romantic melancholic music, gliding and twirling around the
hall, moving in perfect synchrony, no one watching and with no disasters.

For the first time in a long time he slept with a smile on his face. One of
the last few precious smiles he would have for the rest of his life.

The next day, with his sweet dream in mind, Benedict got up early and
readied himself. He picked out the finest clothes, combed his hair with a

special hair gel, took out a new pair of shoes and checked himself in the
mirror. With an approving smile, he grabbed his mini sketchbook and a,

coat and left the room. He didn't even notice the sudden cracks at the
edge of the mirror or the broken leg of his bed.

He ran down the stairs to the dining hall and peeked in the room. There
was no one in yet, it was far too early for the guests to have breakfast after

staying up chatting late night. Yet Benedict had a hunch his ballerina
would make an appearance early morning.

The maids hurried about laying out the breakfast, a fine spread indeed
with various types of buns, jams, eggs, pancakes, fruits and beverages.

Benedict helped himself to some eggs and patiently waited.
After a futile 30 minute wait, he was picking at his eggs when he finally

heard her voice.
“Well hello birthday boy, why are you sitting all alone. I’ll join you for some

breakfast. I’m absolutely starving.” she said as she pulled out a chair to sit
next to him.

“As a matter fact I was waiting for you. I never got your name last night.”
said Benedict hesitantly

She looked at him in mild surprise.
“Waiting for me? Ha ha ha I’m not usually an early riser but for some

reason I felt compelled to come down early today for breakfast. Hmm
must be your birthday luck.” she said with a soft laugh

“My name huh. What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other
name would smell as sweet. It’s been a while since anyone’s said my name,

I don’t remember it. I’ve always been called the china ballerina. I guess you,
birthday boy, can call me China.” she said thoughtfully

“China. I think it is absolutely lovely.” Benedict said beaming





64

China laughed at him,
“No I think you are lovely. So is your name, Benedict. Save me a dance

tonight birthday boy. You’ll be my first dance. I’ll be waiting for you. See
you tonight. Oh and happy birthday.” she said grabbing a slice of toast and

walking away with a smile
Benedict waved calmly with a reciprocating smile, somehow containing the

tsunami of happiness within. She called him lovely! She might as well have
confessed her love for him because that’s what it sounded like to him.

Lovely!
Benedict was beyond ecstatic and excited at the thought of the ball that

night. So excited he didn’t even notice the maid who slipped and fell when
she passed the dining hall. It seems like the ballerina is breaking down all

his walls and putting him in a daze.
He went back to his room and picked out his finest suit, polished his shoes

to a shiny black, ironed his clean shirt crisp, giddy with expectation. When
it was finally time to go down to the hall for the celebration, Benedict

looked handsome exuding power and charisma, the very picture of the
son of a duke.

Benedict walked into the hall and the room exploded with excited chatter,
many rushed towards him to offer their wishes and shake his hand. Some

slipped on their way to reach him, some women had the ends of their
dresses stepped on, and the men accidentally knocked into each other.

Benedict was only eager to be greeted by one particular person.
Nevertheless, he quickly and graciously thanked his guests. He was giving

his father a reluctant half-hug when he heard her voice.
“Finally the star of the night has made his appearance.” she said.

He turned around and his breath caught in his throat, she was in full
ballerina costume, a black lace bodice with a gauzy tutu, stark contrast

against her pale, unblemished china skin.
“Well, I live to please. I suppose you already know, you look beautiful.” said

Benedict.
China smiled at him, a dazzling pearly white smile.

“Thank you darling. For that compliment I’ll grace you with a performance
and after that we shall dance.” said China

Without missing a beat Benedict replied, “I would love that.” His heart
swelled with emotion.

In the far corner of the hall, bits of the ceiling were falling, small leaks had
formed on the surface of the ceiling. In the merry atmosphere of the party,

no one noticed.
65

China walked over to the musicians and whispered something in the
violinist’s ear.

They started playing Nocturne Op 9, No 2 and the music filled the entire
hall. Conversations slowed to a stop and everyone expectantly watched

China.
She did a plié, extended her arm and twirled to the centre of the room

before doing a beautiful pirouette. Everyone was enchanted but
especially so Benedict because the entire time she danced her eyes were

only on him. Benedict could only hear the sound of his own heart
beating. It was deafening. He noticed no one but her.

When the song drew to a close, she twirled to him and reached out her
hand for him to take. He put a hand to her waist and clasped his other

hand together with hers. They waltzed around the hall, gazing at each
other with so much adoration and joy. There wasn’t a single bitter gaze

watching the two besotted couple dancing.
The thunder, lightning and pouring rain outside the mansion went

unnoticed.
Benedict twirled China around then extended his hand and she did an

arabesque before returning into his arms. He just held her in embrace
and gazed at her, both smiling like lovelorn fools.

Benedict put his hand out to caress her face. He closed his eyes and
leaned in to kiss her when he heard a crack and felt his thumb give way.

He opened his eyes and saw China’s cheek cracking and a small hole
where his thumb had rested against. He attempted to stop the cracking

but the moment his fingers came in contact, China shattered. Her cheek
was breaking inwards, she staggered backwards and she lost her balance.

Benedict had shards of china in both his hands and he was violently
shaking, overcome with horror, trying to stop her from breaking before

him. He bent down to try and hold her together but China just looked at
him, petrified, the look in her eyes were like that of a deer in headlights.

Her cheeks completely crumbled in, there were cracks all over her body
and her knees had caved in. Slowly, her chest stopped rising and falling

and became still.
All the blood rushed from Benedict’s face as he grew pale.

“Wake up China, wake up, what’s wrong?” he screamed as he tried to
shake her awake but doing that made her break even more and he

stopped after hearing the sound of shattering china.
He backed away from her and felt his back hit someone.


66

. He turned around and saw his Father looking at China’s dead body,

shell-shocked.
He turned and looked at Benedict, mouth gaping.

“Son…What…I don’t understand.” He said, too many questions running
through his mind.

Benedict’s heart filled with regret and devastation for himself and his
father.

Suddenly his father clutched his chest and collapsed. Too everyone else it
looked like he was having a heart attack but in reality, it was his heart

shrinking. Getting smaller and wrinkled with pain and sadness and all the
emotions rushing through Benedict’s head.

Benedict ran towards his father and cradled his head, sobbing and
screaming

“WAKE UP FATHER. WAKE UP GODDAMMIT.” He shouted
People around him started collapsing one by one. Bigger more visible

pieces of the ceiling started falling. Benedict stopped his crying when he
realised what was happening.

He turned around and left the family he knew, the only girl her loved and
ran out the hall, ran out of the parlour, out of Beechwood as far as he

could, running until his legs gave in, putting as much distance as he could
between him and anyone he had ever loved.













































67

ESSAY














































68

What do you envisage as the next big innovation
in education?

by Christopher Dass




In this modern day and age, education is becoming more

and more essential to all of us. In my opinion, as we stride
forward and continue to ameliorate our society, having a
good education is rapidly becoming the only way for the
new generation to become successful in life. Hence,
innovation in education is vital right now. This is because
the archaic education system of the yesteryear will be
limiting the future generation as it only focusses on the
knowledge side of things and not the wholesome
development of a student. In light of that, I envisage that
the next big innovation in education is the full

implementation of technology in education. This is because
I believe that technology is going to be the wings that will
help the future generation to soar higher and achieve far
greater things.




One way I believe that technology is going to further
improve education is through the use of learning
management systems (LMS) such as Google Classroom.

This technology can be a force multiplier of sorts for
teachers. Through the use of LMS, teachers can manage
and organise their classes through the manipulation of
online educational materials. This would free up the
teachers' time hence allowing them to better facilitate and
guide their students in achieving their success criteria.
Their time can be better spent catering to the different
style of learning of students and more time to spend on
teaching and in turn will streamline the learning process as
it allows the teachers and students alike a central location

for the searching and development of educational
materials. LMS would not only allow educators to monitor
their students' progress at a deeper level, but also enable
them to have a better tracking of said progress.













69

Another course of action that can be taken is the usage of

augmented reality (AR) headsets. Pearsons, the largest
education company, believes that this technology can level
the playing field for students as the technology makes it
easier for students to work, play and learn together no
matter what their socio-economic background is. AR
headsets such as the HoloLens by Microsoft, augments
reality by overlaying holographic materials over current
reality. The user can interact with the holographic overlays
with a pinch of their fingers. HoloLens are already in use in
multiple fields even though it is still in its development
phase. For example, NASA uses it to train and prepare

astronauts for future space explorations. Similarly, AR can
be used in education to support a digital curriculum for
STEM. For instance, it can be used in biology as it allows the
students to view a model of human body with all of its
organs. This allows students to easily grasp the subjects as
the students can interact with these models and teachers to
tangibly and clearly explain the different organs and parts
of the body.





Another form of technology that can be used in education
is artificial intelligence (AI). AI is the simulation of human
intelligence in machines. In fact, it may even surpass certain
capabilities of humans as its ability depends on the
hardware it is running on. One of the ways that it can be
applied in education is by allowing differentiated and
individualized learning based on a student's needs, which
had been impossible for teachers who manage 30 plus
students in a class. This benefit students as they will not be

rushed mindlessly to keep up with their peers. Furthermore,
AI can automate admin tasks. Marking and grading
assignments can be done easily besides recommending
actions to help improve each student through analysis of
the students’ work, giving teachers the extra time they need
with each student.
On the whole, innovation in education is of utmost
importance in our society's pursuit of furthering itself and I

truly believe in the full implementation of technology as the
next big innovation. This is because of its multiple forms
that brings a variety of benefits to students and in turn
further the development of technology. These
developments will be useful in the future where it can be
used to achieve greater things.



70

Experiences on Doing a Youtube Channel
By Lee Ann, Tharshini, Rabiatul Adawiyah, Sabrina Halim
(S1DP3)


Today, social media plays an increasingly more
important role in the life of society because users spend

a lot of time online and they view social media as an
important source of information about the specific
issues which users are concerned with. YouTube, being
one of the mainstream social media, allows users to
share their videos online, create their channels and,
thus, create their own virtual communities united by
common interests. YouTube also has become a tool for
the promotion of individuals and ideas because users
can use social media to promote themselves and their
ideas to their world.



Now we are going to have a look on how to create a
YouTube channel. Firstly, download the YouTube app on
the device you prefer. Secondly, log into your Gmail
account. Thirdly, if you are using your mobile phone tap
on your profile picture on the top right of your screen.
Tap on ‘Your Channel’, then you will see a page directing
you to create a channel. Tap on ‘Create A Channel’ then
as easy as that, it’s done, you officially have a YouTube

channel.


Next, if you wish to edit your channel, tap on ‘Edit
Channel’ where you can tap on the camera icon to
change the profile picture of your channel. In addition,
you can make it more interesting by adding a
background to your channel using templates from apps
like Canva, Microsoft Power Point, PicsArt and so on.


In a nutshell, creating a YouTube channel could be done
in only 5 minutes just by following these few simple

steps and then you are all done. As a beginner, I felt
these steps were easy, however due to time constraint,
we did not have the time to upload the videos, but we
will be taking on the challenge to upload the video right
after our PSPM 2 ends.












71

CNY 2021

By Amanda, Yong Cheng Xuan, Tan Wan Ting


With over 500,000 people dead, and around 10 million
others infected, Covid-19 continues to ravage across the
world, sparing no one. The infection rate can only be

described as dramatic, with its high casualty rate, coupled
with disproportionate impacts in developing countries which
makes this virus terrifying. Covid-19 taught the world
awareness, including to always take measures such as social
distancing, sanitizing and frequent washing of hands, as well
as wearing a mask when you walk anywhere. From dinner at
home to virtual events, students of KMNS have been showing
the unique ways they celebrated Chinese New Year


Being a Chinese student studying in another state is always

hard especially when we are used to celebrating with our
family. This year’s celebration is more special as we need to
follow the SOP set up by authorities such as we are not
allowed to sit close to each other and we are not allowed to
be seen without a mask. Therefore I had no expectations for
the celebration as we were not able to go home due to the
pandemic. Even though we were given a choice of going home,
all the Chinese students in KMNS chose to stay in college to
reduce the chance of getting diagnosed with Covid-19.



Luckily, my college was going above and beyond to create a
sense of community and to make the campus feel like home
for Chinese student. For example, we decorated our rooms by
making origami and our teachers even prepared some red
envelopes with a sweet surprise for us. I did feel very
homesick as I missed my mother’s cooking so much.
Fortunately, one of my friend’s family member brought us
some home cooked dishes. Thus, I was able to satisfy my
craving for home cooked dishes. My friends and I spent the

night at one of my other friend’s room We played a couple of
games such as card games. We also talked about our lives and
expressed our feelings to each other. Although I was sad that
I cannot celebrate Chinese New Year with my family but I was
able to experience a different refreshing way of celebrating
Chinese New Year which is celebrating with friends.












72

Besides that, we also enjoyed watching fireworks
together. I remembered back then how annoyed I was
when I heard the noisy fireworks in my neighbourhood
that caused me to have insomnia every day during
Chinese New Year. But when we are here, that is when

we really realized that we have taken things for granted
and were just hoping to enjoy some nice fireworks.
Fortunately, our dreams all came true and there is
indeed big and beautiful fireworks available once in a
blue moon in KMNS.


In our Asian culture, it is commonly said family first and
friends next because blood is thicker than water. Hence,
it is definitely our first time in 18 years to spend Chinese
New Year without our families. Yet, we are all grateful to

make full use of this rare opportunity with the little
moments spent with our friends in KMNS. For example,
eating a simple Chinese dish with our lovely friends,
having chit-chat sessions, playing board games together.
KMNS made us all learn how to make the best out of
everything when things do not go the way we want it too
and to see things from a different perspective and
adapting to the situation.
















































73

Cultivating civic mindedness among youth

By: Mugilan’s Group



Civic mindedness is actions, activities or individuals that
are motivated by or that show concern for the public good
or humanity as a whole. Doing community service and
running for charity are examples of activities motivated by
civic mindedness. Most developed country like Japan,
Australia and Korea have civic mindedness people and this
is influenced by many factors. Our country Malaysia is
currently working for it to produce and to nurture civic
mindedness people especially among generation Z.



Firstly, we can nurture civic mindedness among citizen is
from their family. Parents especially plays an important
role to influence their children. Poor upbringing can cause
these kids lacks of such moral values. Parents must act like
a role model because usually tend to copy everything that
their parent do. So, it is important to set up a good
example for their kids. For instance, parents can their kids

to let other people out of the elevator first before entering
the elevator. That shows that we greatly consider of other
people and not just being selfish. These values should be
in every human to spread love to each and everyone of us.
In conclusion, every word, movement, and action has
affected. No other person or outside force has a greater
influence on a child than a parent.


Besides that, peer pressure. Peer pressure is the direct
influence on people by peers, or the effect on an
individual who is encouraged and wants to follow their

peers by changing their attitude values or behaviors to fit
in to those of the influencing group or individual. We
should be really selective when it comes to let people
enter our life such as friends. Good friends will lead you in
the dark and bring you to right path. For teenagers, we
also spend more time with friends rather than family. For
example, you and your friends as pedestrians can choose
to use the crosswalk to cross the road to avoid accidents

to occur. In conclusion, we must choose our friends
carefully. The good one will give you joy while the bad one
will give u lesson.









74

Lastly, the teachers at school or universities can open up about

having civic mindedness in the classes. So, the student will learn

from it. For example, they can teach it in English subject or Moral
subject. Hence, the students will get an early exposure and can

apply it in everyday life. Teachers also can organize a visit to the old

folks’ home together with the students. Besides generating high
scores, our education system also shall improve to nurture good

values. In a nutshell, education field plays a vital part in cultivating

civic mindedness among youth.



In conclusion, we should avoid having fear of getting involved,
perhaps that had hindered many of us from doing civic minded acts

spontaneously, such as preventing a quarrel or brawl in public

places. Perhaps we shall not lack the confidence and skills to deal
with strangers. Civic minded is a culture. In a society that has this,

people feel empowered to do the right things individually and
collectively. We should work harder to develop this culture. A sense

of direction and purpose must guide active citizenry.


















































75

Mixed feelings staying in cluster Intan Delima
Toh Xinyian
S1FP2


It has been four weeks since I've come back to college. A big
issue was happening in my college. We had acquired a new
name; Cluster Intan Delima. Yes, the positive cases in my
college had increased, not too drastically, but for me, the
number was quite.
After returning to college, I realized that most of us were not
aware of the seriousness of this pandemic. We were advised
to practise the 3R and 3W. For example, when I was eating at
the cafe, I observed that no one was actually following the
SOP. When I saw this situation, I was quite worried because all
of us come from different parts of Malaysia. We were
supposed to be quarantined in our room for 14 days. but due
to the lack of awareness of the students, this guideline was
not observed at all. Yet the college did not take any action
over this matter. Personally I think that students should have
self-awareness that this SOP is crucial to prevent ourselves
from getting infected with Covid-19.


The thing that I was most worried about still happened despite
praying hard that everything would be okay. The so-called “14
days” of quarantine had not ended yet. We received rumors
saying that there was a positive case in our college campus..
My first action was to ensure everyone around me was safe. I
was waiting for the official announcement from the college,
yet I did not receive any. For me, if there's no information
from the college's official account, I will not take it as
legitimate news. After waiting for a day or two, the college was
still keeping quiet. Despite the rumors spreading fast, the
college had not clarified anything. I began to feel panicky. I
received news that 14 KMNS students who were the first
contact with the initial Covid 19 positive student had been
identified and isolated. As we all know the virus spreads
through droplets. When the students were staying in the
dorm, they did not wear masks all the time. Some even slept
over at their friend’s room. This actually increased the risk of
getting infected with Covid-19. I got to know that some of
them were “caught” red handed and were sent for swab tests,
and quarantined as well. To be honest, I felt like our college
was handling the situation well despite not informing the
other students of the identity of those first contacts that were
being quarantined. I found out later from my friends from
other colleges, it seems KMNS had managed the situation
better with early intervention by sending any symptomatic
cases for swab tests and isolating them.
I understood that they did not want to make any
announcement because they didn't want the students to be
alarmed. 76

My Bittersweet Memories
By: Yogeindran, S1CP1

The first day I stepped foot into college, my heart was pounding
very fast as I have never stayed in a hostel before. These college

buildings looked old but the facilities were quite complete. I met

people who came from every corner of Malaysia. As the time we
entered the college was a post-MCO period, I had a strong feeling

that my journey here will not be easy. The saddest part was being

separated from my parents. Parents were not allowed to accompany
us to our room due to strict SOP. It was an emotional moment when

I walked away from my parent’s vehicle. Tears literally rolled down my
cheeks. This was my first time being away from home and I ended up

being homesick for weeks.

Being at a new place and seeing new people was a turning point
for me as I realised that I had to be independent and learn to adapt

myself to the new surroundings. My first impression of my
roommates was not really favourable. I expected my roommates to

be sociable and friendly but it took us three weeks to really get to

know each other. As time passed we really became quite close. We
began to share food and hang out together. We also had movie night

on weekends in the dormitory. Being with them was lots of fun but I

realised that my biggest problem was the language barrier. I was not
that fluent in Bahasa Melayu. I had difficulties in communicating with

my Malay friends. I was thankful that my Malay friends were tolerant

and helped me improve my speaking skills in Bahasa Melayu. During
those early days, I found myself struggling to adapt. I felt so lonely. I

was stressed and demotivated and I cried. At times I even had

suicidal thoughts in my head. Thank God, I made a few new friends
who kept me engaged away from loneliness. One of the first person

who I met here was Jegajeevaram Gabriel and he introduced me to
Dineshkumar, Kasturi, Jasvena and Vaitheishwary. Soon the circle of

friends became bigger and bigger which included Dharshiga, Diviya,

Darshiny and Kaveen. We had a lot of good memories and
unforgettable moments. We watched movies together, ate together

and even walked to classes together. They were my backbone who
gave me moral support and love. I can’t imagine how my life in KMNS

could have been without them.



77

My first experience attending classes was a memorable one. On

10 August 2020, I woke up at 5:30 a.m. and took my bath and

put my clothes on. Actually, this was the first time I was wearing
a formal attire. I didn’t know even how to tie a tie. It literally took

me 30 minutes to fix my tie before I had my breakfast. Despite

that, I managed to reach 15 minutes before my class started
because I was a morning person. The first lecturer I met was

Encik Mohamad Azli (HOD of Students Affairs Department). He

was my co-curriculum subject lecturer. The first day was the
introduction day. I was under tremendous pressure when my

lecturer introduced the assessments that we needed to do for

each semester. Of course, I was anxious and my legs were
shaking and I suddenly started to sweat for no reason. I’ve

always had panic attacks during my secondary school days but
this experience was totally different. At school, I only had to

focus on preparing myself for examinations as well as

completing my assignments and projects. Here, in college I had
to prepare for practical tests so that they are successful and

yield the correct results. Well, this is really what we called as a
level up. Learning at school and college is totally different.

I recalled the time when I scored poorly in my Physics quiz, I

started to cry. It worsened when I didn’t do well in Chemistry
and Biology too. At that moment, I started experiencing anxiety

attacks and was really stressed out over the simplest thing. With

some sound advice from the lecturers, I managed to calm
myself and overcame these attacks. My chemistry lecturer was

too stern and I disliked her at first. But later I realised that she

was the best and most caring teacher. The only thing she
wanted was to help us score in the final examination. My

Physics lecturer was sweet and she helped us a lot to score in

our continuous assessment. My Maths lecturer was also lenient
and would not even scold us for not doing our work. My biology

lecturer was a motherly figure. She created a good bond with us
and taught us Biology in many interesting ways. I learned the

technique of studying and most importantly I learned time

management. If you are good in managing time, you can score
well and obtain better results.
78

Here are some tips to score in exams.

1) Listen to our lecturers when they are teaching

2) Ask our lecturers when we do not understand something
3) Do not procrastinate work or assignments.

4) Practise answering all the past year questions and practices.



2020/2021 session was a unique but a stressful year. Due to

Covid19 pandemic, a lot of activities and programmes were not

conducted as planned. Yet, I managed to participate in a few
activities and programmes such as JPP election although most

of the events were conducted online. We were not allowed to

go out for outing and overnight stay. It was quite stressful and
parents were also not allowed to visit us. I had a really tough

time to keep up with the course as our learning was hybrid
(online and face to face). The experience was bitter sweet.

Despite all the difficulties and struggles, I managed to find the

bright side of being in Matriculation. I am thankful for being able
to be part of Kolej Matrikulasi Negeri Sembilan when many

other good students were not given a place to study here. I
consider myself to be a fortunate one because not only has

KMNS given me the chance to further my studies, my

experience here has made me realise the importance of racial
integration and how the national language can strengthen the

relationship among those of different races. Furthermore, the

knowledge and the life-long learning skills which I picked up
here will be helpful in my future undertakings. I hope you have

enjoyed reading about my experiences here in KMNS.


























79

Cyberbullying on social media




Cyberbullying is defined as using any form of technology to
intentionally intimidate the receiver of the messages. This new

form of bullying is becoming more popular than traditional bullying

because now one who does not dare to say hurtful things face-to-
face can just hide behind the screen and say it. As a result, this

may push people over their limit and at times the victim commits
suicide.

One of the problems related to cyberbullying is body shaming.

Body shaming issues were prevalent in all platforms especially
Instagram and Twitter. Body shaming includes fat shaming, face

shaming, height shaming and so on. Why do they body shame? It

is because they may feel they are giving you advice on how to
move up in the world by criticizing someone’s appearance or feel

that they are complimenting someone for his or her work to abide

by societal standards by commenting on how the person’s body
has changed.

Cyberbullying will influence a teenager’s self-esteem. Self-esteem

can either make or break a person. For instance, cyberbullying can
result in increased distress for the victims along with increased

anger and frustration. Prolonged bullying will lead to severe
withdrawal from their family and friends. They will begin favouring

isolation most of the time and indulging in harmful activities like

drugs and alcohol. Hence, this problem should be overcome as
soon as possible before crying over spilled milk.



One of the best ways to overcome cyber bullying is to be

transparent. We cannot pretend that cyberbullying is not

happening, especially if it is occurring repeatedly or relentlessly.
Instead of trying to sweep it under the rug, be open about it, write

posts acknowledging that it is happening, and be prepared to

defend your stance. Make sure you know what your viewpoint is
on whatever issue you’re being harassed about, and be ready to

stand up for yourself. This will help clarify to your followers and

real friends why you believe what you do, and keep you feeling
rational and clear-headed in the face of harassment.
80

Additionally, if you need to monitor or delete comments on

your page, make sure you let your followers know why you are
doing so. They will understand, especially if you make the

reason and purpose clear. Transparency is often the best policy

for dealing with irrational hateful abuse.
Apart from that, another solution is to use education to teach

students from young that cyberbullying is morally wrong. For
example, in Malaysia, the Ministry of Education has

implemented a series of topics that are to be incorporated in

subjects such as English, Civics and Moral Education (CME). This
method attempts to inculcate proper values for students since

young to teach them what is morally right.
In conclusion, cyberbullying on social media is very dangerous

and risky as it can affect one’s physical and mental health. Thus,

we as human beings must work together to prevent
cyberbullying from becoming a norm in our society. Many

organisations have also launched campaigns such as ‘Stop

Cyberbullying’ to educate people about the consequences and
solutions of cyberbullying. People of Malaysia must cooperate

and work together to make Malaysia a country free of

cyberbullying.











































81

MadFit Club

By Tee Chel Ly

S1AP5
MadFit Club, which is the contraction for Mad Fitness Club is a club
that Ii joined when I was studying in Negeri Sembilan Matriculation

College. The reason I joined this club is because I wanted to balance

my life between studying and exercising. Since MadFit Club carries
out dancing activities like Zumba and Aerobics for girls, I joined the

club without any hesitation. I held the position as secretary for
MadFit Club, and my main duties were to check the member's

attendance and take pictures of the dance sessions. Every

Wednesday, the club members will gather at Dewan Minangkabau
for the dance session. The dance sessions were led by Puan Wan

Zanirah and different members attend every week. The dance steps

are easy to follow as the songs have catchy rhythm and the dance
moves are not too complicated. I enjoyed the dance sessions as I

was able to stay fit and spend quality time with my friends. I found

myself to have a better appetite after the dance sessions and I was
able to be more focused during class the next day since dancing

increases metabolic rate and this helped me to stay alert. Thanks to
MadFit Club, I was able to perform a dance during the Malaysia

Day's celebration in our college. The club members performed a

Joget dance, a Chinese traditional fan dance and we also danced
along to a patriotic song, Tanggal 31. It was such a great experience

as I had the opportunity to wear the traditional Chinese costume. In

this club was where I was able to meet new friends of different
races. Although the performance was less than 10 minutes, we felt

satisfied to see the fruits of our hours of practice and rehearsals.
Our performance won cheers and claps from the crowd that day.

Joining MadFit Club was one of the best decision I ever made in

matriculation college as I gained a lot of good experiences and
sweet memories, and I wish everyone will be able to carve their own

memories and gain new experiences in KMNS.














82

Living Positively

By Lee Yi Heng
“Don’t take yourself too seriously. Be the person who brings

joy, humility and fun, even as you strive to reach difficult goals and

make your difference.”
-Brendon Burchard, the author of New York Times.




This is an art of human life. We need to become an accommodating
and thoughtful person. We have to try to accept each other’s opinions

and empathise with other’s circumstances. In our social life, if we are
too eloquent in certain matters, we will be disliked by others, unless

you desire to be a debater or lawyer.

Here, I want to share an unpleasant encounter with someone I
met in KMNS. I still vividly remember this horrific event when most of

my friends here were diagnosed positive for Covid-19. It hit us so hard

that we all felt so down, sympathetic and concerned about their
conditions. All of us except this one inconsiderate person that I know.

Not one wishes to be infected. If we did, it is by accident. Not only did

he not have any empathy for the victims but also criticized them badly.
He blamed the victims for not following the SOP, no sanitising their

hands and not practising social distancing. Although others have
dismissed his unfair judgement, he arrogantly continued to argue and

make bad remarks on the matter without considering the feelings of

the victims until he was finally boycotted by his friends. Why did it
become so serious? Because if this person had apologised for his

remarks he would not have been alienated by others till today
The moral of the story is… for whatever things that happen,

do not always think you’re right. For small potatoes in life, don’t be too

serious, be humble and do not think you need to win over every single
argument. Stop arguing on the issue that we can never find the

definite right or wrong. Like arguing on “which comes first: the chicken

or the egg?” It is a never-ending story.














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From the academic aspect, we cannot be too serious too. Yet, we

need to strive for excellence. Just imagine, it is tough to understand

every single concept in Mathematics or Physics. We can just make it
simple, just memorise the formulae and apply it in our final

examination (it is how my Physics lecturer taught me, quite simple

really), unless you want to be a mathematician or physician in future.
And for language such as English, we should not take it seriously as a

subject, but as a communicative tool. We don’t need to memorise

many bombastic words. We just need to focus on the common
words used by the ordinary people to express their feelings and

opinions so that we can understand the message given. Just make it

simple and be smart, and you will find fun in studying.



Don’t dwell on the small things. Don’t be overconfident with
your own perception and thoughts. Spend more time to see the

world, listen more, learn from others and maintain a good

relationship with others. That is the purpose of life. That is what I
have learnt in life at KMNS.
















































84

The Road to A Safer Future
By Dhanieya Ganeish


Change is a matter of perception. A transformation of the mindset

can give birth to a better world and education is the only way to

change the way people think. Think of it this way, building a safer
future is like making jigsaw puzzle and education is the most

important piece in this puzzle. The value of education has long
been underestimated and undervalued but it builds minds that can

either make this world a better place, leave it no better than it was

or nurture hate and crime in this world. Education is the only way to
effect change in a large and permanent scale.



What is a safer future? A future where a girl can go out at night

without worrying about rapists. A future where the colour of one’s

skin is trivial and not a trigger for crime. A future where people
aren’t attacked by sudden sense of paranoia when they see

someone from a Middle East country wearing robes. A future

where we do not attempt to mold ourselves to the parameters of
others by self-harming. A future of peace and tranquility. However,

we are plagued by so many troubles and problems that this future

seems so unattainable but I think if we take the right path, the right
road, that of education and changing perceptions, nothing is

impossible.

One of the major problems we face in the world are hate crimes
which have been on a rise lately in 2016 and 2017. According to

ODIHR which specialises in reporting hate crimes, in America alone,
in 2015, there were 6885 hate crimes recorded by the police a

number which increased to 7321 in 2017. An increase in hate

crimes are recorded and according to FBI, black Americans were
targeted in about half the 3,489 incidents based on race, ethnicity

or ancestry. About half the 1,273 incidents that involved religion
were against Jews. Muslims were targeted in 307 religion-based

crimes, up 19 percent from 2015 and double the number in

2014.There were 1,076 incidents involving lesbian, gay, bisexual or
transgender people, with almost two-thirds of those targeting gay

men. The hate crimes recorded last year included nine murders

and 24 rapes. Of the 5,770 known offenders, 46 percent were white
and 26 percent were African-American.
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The root of this problem is the lack of education regarding

acceptance of race, sexuality and religion. In the 21st century, as a
more open-minded generation, racism and discrimination against

sexuality and religion shouldn’t even be a problem.



It is up to the community of the world and its youth as well as

education ministries to include it in the syllabus in schools,
universities and other institution to educate everyone on the

acceptance of everyone as who they regardless of the colour of

their skin and the gods they pray to and who they choose to love.
This education is just as important as learning mathematics, science

and languages. Furthermore, with technology at hand as one of the

most powerful tools, it is time to change the mindsets of people
who must learn to accept and adapt to the new world to make it a

better and more peaceful place instead of inspiring hate crimes.

The second most obvious problem is terrorism. Terrorism has a
long history filled with bloodshed and sacrifice in the name of

democracy and freedom while millions of lives are sacrificed. Some
terrorists even claim to kill people in the name of religion or the

greater good. Terrorists are basically people who believe they are

fighting for a true and noble cause, refusing to accept the views of
others and influence others to see things their ways. In an article

published by the New York Times, the journalist very eloquently
differentiated a communist and a terrorist. While a communist

would readily admit to his crime, a terrorist would never admit

himself as someone who is committing a crime, rather he lives in an
illusion that he is right and his actions are by the will of god. This is

an effect of growing up uneducated and exposed to a disillusioned

environment. It never escapes me, the fact that every terrorist was
once a child, had once an opportunity to actually improve the world

if he had received proper education and knowledge instead of

becoming a terrorist.



A step that can actually be taken to slow down terrorism and

perhaps even stop it entirely is by educating children who grow up
in that community. United Nations in hand with superpower

countries should work to creating a green-zone for the education of
the children and negotiate with the countries. 86

Terrorism is spreading quickly and quietly and is ready to strike

when we least expect it, efforts must be taken to curb terrorism
before it reaches an even more critical point. It must always be

remembered, children are the future, if we cannot alter the mindset

of adults who have grown up influenced and beguiled, we must set
the mindset of the children to support peace, appreciate life and

help them realize that they have a future where they can contribute
to the world through education. It is an mammoth task but if

countries join hands and are truly invested in efforts to curb

terrorism, this could truly create miracles. Vouloir c’est pouvoir.
When there’s a will, there’s a way.




Next and perhaps one of the most worrying issue is regarding
sexual harassment, abuse, rape and people’s attitude towards it. In

a gang rape case in India, where a young girl who was boarding the

bus alone at night was attacked and raped by a group of young
men, one of the perpetrators said a girl was far more responsible

for rape than a guy. What kind of environment did he grow up in to

actually come to a point where he truly believed that committing
rape was not his fault? The lack of modern education and growing

up surrounded by a culture that expects women to be submissive
and subservient and putting men on a pedestal is precisely the

reason why such cases continue to occur. The world is evolving and

transforming into a more developed and modernized place with no
place for a culture like this. The new generation must teach their

children of gender equality and equal rights. Develop the mindset
of the youth to nurture respect.




In America, 1 out of 6 women has been a victim of an attempted or
completed rape in her lifetime. The blatant disrespect for women is

reflected through the increasing number of such cases. The

saddest thing is that some women are not even aware of the fact
that they have a right to say “NO”. When they say no, men should

respect that and oblige to it. When they are raped or sexually

harassed, they should know that they are not in the wrong, that
there are laws to protect them and bring justice to the perpetrator.






87

Men should also know that they must always respect a woman and

never force her into anything she doesn’t want. It is all a matter of

mindset and men and women alike must be educated in the form of
sex education. The very subject of sex education is considered taboo

and too crass to be taught to students but in my opinion, it is a

necessary measure to ensure that the youth are educated on these
matters to decrease the number of these cases in near future.




Lastly, the issue of suicide due to body- shaming, and depression
among teenagers is one closest to my heart because as a teenager I

can actually see it happening around me. Teenagers these days grow

up with tabloids and magazines saying being thin is beautiful and
being fat is ugly. So many magazines constantly offer tips on how to

lose weight or what clothes to wear to disguise how fat you are,
nurturing the notion that being thin is good and being fat is bad

instead of promoting being healthy. Growing up in this environment, it

is no wonder there are teenagers everywhere constantly making fun
of their friends and classmates for being overweight.

Magazines, tabloids and social media must educate its users that it
doesn’t matter how thin you are or how fat you are or whether you

have scars and pimples or not rather they should encourage people to

be healthy, to be kind and to be content and happy with who they are,
inside and out. Furthermore, body shaming leads to depression which

then leads to suicide. Schools should provide a subject to educate

teenagers on being healthy both mentally and physically.
In conclusion, while the world is riddled with various issues, with

proper education and good outreach, it is possible for us to build a

safer future. The current generation should be the ones to properly
utilize education to effect change and bring peace and safety

worldwide. With determination and education, let’s begin to pave the

road to a safer future.

















88

what say you




By: Dhanieya Ganeish


Nearing the end of our journey at KMNS, there was a picnic event held to give students the

opportunity to make some memories and have fun for one last time before shifting all focus to the

coming exam week and our final PSPM exam. During this picnic event, a team of representatives
from the English Language Club decided to visit the venue to ask students some interesting
questions regarding the theme of our magazine this year. We received some really unique responses
and insight into how fairy tales can really influence what kind of person we want to be and what

qualities we value the most.




What'




My favourite cartoon was Super Sijin. I memorised
Ruhan
most of the dialogues like the magical words and

all. I liked her because she could fly and you know
as a child, for me it seemed like such a magical

thing to do.





















My favourite cartoon was the Diary of A Wimpy
Anthony
Kid as a child. I used to be a fan of Greg and his

friend Roland. I liked him because he was really
carefree. I also used to like Harry Potter and that
made me want to read the entire series and I was a

really huge Potterhead as a child. I m from
Ravenclaw house.














89

Amar
-When I was younger, my favourite cartoon
was Upin Ipin. I liked it because they were very

adventurous and I like their relationships as
twins.




















Who’


cartoon



My favourite character was Cinderella. I liked
Anis
her because she was very honest with herself

and she isn t desperate for a guy for his

material wealth. Even though she only met the

prince for a few minutes she liked him for his
character.












I like Elsa from Frozen because I think she s
Shin
very brave to finally show herself and her true
powers. I learned from that there even if you

feel like you re alone, there are actually people

around you who love you and are there for you.
















90

Shivee
-My favourite character is Wanda Maximoff.
She is from the Marvel Comics and I like her

because she is the most powerful character in
Marvel Universe in my opinion. She also puts the

safety of the people she loves before herself so

I think that s very admirable.













Chel Ly

I think my favourite was Cinderella. I liked that
she was pretty as a princess at the ball but

also as just her plain self at home. She had
many sides to her character that made her

very interesting.
















Helennie
-My favourite character as a kid was Piper
McLean from the Percy Jackson Series. I like

how she s not your regular girl. She s

Aphrodite s daughter but she breaks free from
this stereotype that she should be very

beautiful or pretty and that she has to be

someone proper. She s her own self and she s

determined to be good. By herself she s someone

who is very caring and amazing. I hope one day

there will be a life action version of this series.









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If ,


Mimi
If I could be any character I probably choose to

be Merida from Brave because I m really

interested in archery and I would love to be as
good in it as Merida.


















-When I was younger I liked Batman. I liked him
Alif
because he was always helping people and

because he s very rich. Also all his cars were

super cool. If I could be any fictional character
today I would be Spiderman because I like

freedom and I admire his ability to swing
anywhere he wants at any time.












Nazri
-My favourite character was Cinderella. I liked

her because she was so beautiful and patient.
Even though everyone hated her, she held no

resentment for others and was kind to

everyone. If I could be any fictional character
today I would be Boboiboy because he has this

superpower where he can split himself into 7
versions so I can be many different characters

of myself.









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rticles



































































93

ENGLISH QUIZ In the midst of quarantine, wether KMNS students

were still able to find joy in the little things we did. We
were all going through the process of quarantine and

online classes and the English Language Club took the
opportunity to hold a competition to fill in the boring

days of quarantine. The competition was organized by
THE
B y s y a s y a charge was Pn.Cheah Yit Ying and aided by Pn Salwa
the English Language club of KMNS. The teacher in


Anita Binti Isa the HOD of Social Science. The
objective of the competition was to improve the

knowledge of students in the usage of English
Language skills. In addition to that, it was also to build

student’s interest in learning the language and expand

their vocabulary in general.



On 24th January 2021, a quiz competition was

held. The competition was held from 2 pm till 3 pm.
on a Sunday. A total of 208 people participated.

However, only 162 participants managed to get
through online to answer as many people had

difficulties trying to access the Quizzes app. The
total number of people who joined was First place winner

overwhelming that the organizers had to split

participants into 3 groups into 3 different sessions.
At 2 pm the link to the quiz was sent to the

participants and they would begin to answer the
quiz and then at 3 pm the link was closed and the

ranking of the participants would be shown to the
organizers. There was no fee needed as the

competition was held via the Quizziz app. Every
participant was given an e-certificate. The Second place winner

questions were somewhat rather tricky and there
was one trivial question solely for potter heads. Out

of all the students who joined the competition, five

were announced as winners. The winners were
decided based on accuracy and timing. I too
participated in the competition and without a doubt

found certain questions to be real puzzling but I got

through at the end. Third place winner
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The competition was quite challenging as when asked the
winners what they thought of the competition they said that
some of the questions left them bewildered. Some quotes
that we got from the participants were that the competition
was well organized and the e-certificate was received as
soon as the competition ends. Honestly, credit goes to the
organizers for the efficiency. The winner of first place said
that the competition was testing as and the question was
tricky. The runner up of the competition said that the
competition was a great opportunity for students to test their

knowledge and to learn new things. The competition
introduced them to a lot of interesting facts and was also
helpful in releasing built up tension during the start of a
hectic semester. The winner of the fourth place expressed
how the question posed was challenging however there
was a loophole and people could actually cheat on it. But
no one was prepared to reveal what this loophole was.
Everyone agreed that the questions were challenging but
quite fun and they enjoyed it regardless.



A few days after the quiz competition ended a prize giving
ceremony was held to acknowledge the winners. Of course,

everyone had to follow the SOP and the organizers made
sure everyone was wearing a face mask and were sanitized
before entering the hall. It was a simple ceremony but still
memorable. Everyone got their fair share and the ceremony
ended in an hour. The winners received small gifts and as a
surprise they also got a bubble tea and a McDonald’s apple

pie. Some pictures were taken. However as the college was
still in quarantine it had to end early to minimize any physical
contact.


No doubt this quiz provided a quick and fun past time to fill in
the gaps of quarantine life in college. It was a simple

competition but was participated by many as the flow of
the competition was quick and simple. Surely if there was
an opportunity like this in the future, I’m sure many
students would be delighted to join in.







95

T-SHIRT As the cold days of December came to an end and

January started to roll in, the year 2021 started strong
with a competition held by the English Language club
DESIGN to hone the hidden talents that lie in the depths of the


members of KMNS students. Without a doubt there are
many wonderful talents hidden amongst many people

C O M P E T I T I O N in the world. This T-shirt designing competition was
By Syasya held to bring out those talents that people keep hidden
from others. As the saying by Brenda Ueland
goes “Everybody is talented because everybody who is a human has something to express.”
People use different methods to express their talents and this competition was the bridge to

bring this talent out. Art is abstract and expressive. Consequently, we can even say that this
competition was a way for the students of KMNS to showcase their creative skills.


Early on the competition was well received despite
everyone adjusting to the flow of a new semester. The

organizers put up a competition poster on the KMNS
telegram group chat. As a sign of support people would
reply to the post with the symbol ‘rt’. As the group chat was

be flooded with random things the students chat, the
organizers expressed how they had to repost the poster for
a solid 15 days straight. Some people even thought that it
was never-ending as every time you open the group chat

the poster would be one of those spam posts. Be that as it
may, many people were genuinely interested in the
competition and joined. The steps to be a participant were

straightforward. People who were interested just needed to
register through a Google form that was attached to the
post. There was a limited number of places for the

participants. After the initial technical hiccups, the
competition was held for 12 straight days from 15 till the
26th of January.

During this short crucial period, participants needed to draft
and polish their creative their ideas and turn them into English Language Club Official T-shirt
actual designs that would be eligible to be submitted. There is a saying that humans work well
under pressure. Undeniably, an artistic person would agree with me on this when I say
how one’s art is subject to different interpretations. There was no specific guideline given

for the designs. Thus, people came up with different and extraordinary ideas. The
organizers even revealed that the final three designs that were selected were going
hand in hand in a fierce competition for the first place.







96

There was a total of 30 submissions. The judging criteria were creativity,

visibility, and relevance. A club logo and a relevant English quote would
contribute to better chances of winning. Out of the 30 submissions, five

designs were picked as finalists. The winning design went into production
and went on sale for the whole student body. The winner of the

competition was also gifted with a free t-shirt printed with the winning
design.


Indeed the competition made a significant impact on the students as it
provided an avenue for the students to contribute their creative ideas and the

whole experience of working together as a team was a fruitful one. The
committee enjoyed the process that took place in making and designing the

T-shirt. They also expressed how grateful they were with the opportunity
given by the English Language Club to exhibit their talent in this area. The
organizers also conveyed their gratitude to everyone who contributed in

making this competition a successful one. Through the competition, students
were able to design a T-shirt that symbolized the identity of the English Club,
learn to compromise and solve problems in determining the designs that

would be accepted by the majority. It was a highly successful event held by
the English Language Club and it was fulfilling to see it achieving its
objective.



























Second place winner First place winner Third place winner



97