(SC2) Litter, litter everywhere – the problem ain’t going to stop there!

Imagine getting out of your house and you walk down the stairs to get some fresh air. You just want to release all the stress in you, thinking that the playground near your house would be a perfect place to do so. How would you feel if this was not the case? As you walk down, you see Styrofoam boxes lying around, drink packets thrown everywhere and food packaging open, with the food still inside and spilling out. You want to relieve stress, but instead, on the way down, you are ‘accompanied’ by hordes of rubbish on the floor. Littering has always been a problem here. Even with talks and campaigns trying to stop people from littering, this problem still continues to exist. If even the supposedly caring people who are interested in eco-tourism are litterbugs, what hope is there to stop this problem? Perhaps the question we should be asking ourselves is not who is going to pick it up, but how do we prevent litter from even reaching the ground in the first place?

Even though littering might seem like a minor thing, do not be mistaken. Just by littering something as little as a bottle cap can cause big problems in the community. When a bottle cap is left on the floor, water from rain or dew will be stored in the bottle. When there is stagnant water, mosquitoes such as the Aedes mosquitoes can breed and this may cause a breakout of dengue fever in the neighbourhood. When many residents fall ill with dengue, their daily lives will be affected. For adults, they will not be able to go to work. This can be a serious problem if the person is the sole breadwinner of the family. Their pay would be cut, making them unable to support their family. For children, they would not be able to go to school. Their studies would be affected as they will find it hard to catch up with the rest of the classmates. The problem is that anyone who has dengue does get well in just one day; it can take up to one week. Everything would be disrupted and they cannot put it back on track as a lot of things have already passed.

Not only would it affect the hygiene of the community, their safety and community would also be affected. How is this so? Well, if a fire were to break out in an HDB flat, for example, the lift could not be used and the only way down and out would be the staircase. Imagine how difficult it would be if the staircase is stuffed with litter. Residents would take a slower time to go down the stairs as they would have to slowly avoid the litters. Also, if the litters are big bags, the passage way would be narrowed. If the movement of people slows down, it just increases the risks of the people getting involved in fire-related accidents.

Furthermore, having litter everywhere will also give a very horrible impression of the neighbourhood to others. When they go to visit someone in that area or just want to hang out there, and they see a lot of rubbish on the floor, they will feel uncomfortable going around there. If less people visit, the mood wil change from lively and happy to emotionless and silence. Everyone will look down on the neighbourhood and if tourists find out about this, tourism rates can fall and this will badly affect the economy.

It is not a secret. Litter has many effects on the environment. It is extremely unsightly can injure others. We need to remember, that littering will affect the health, safety, and even the economy. IF we stop all this, the world would be a better world to live in.

Extensive Reading Programme

'Once More to the Lake' by E.B White
b) Recall a time your parent brought you to a place that holds a lot of memories. Describe how it felt then and its impact on you.

Every day, whenever I leave my house for my workplace, I would take the same route there. I would pass by these distinct buildings while I am in the bus on my way to work. They are distinct, not because of their vibrant colours and unique architectural features, but due to the memories that I had when I was just 14 years old. Many things happened there, but one place there stood out from all the other buildings, as there was an incident that happened there that could never be erased from my mind.

It was the first weekend of the June holidays. The sun was shining brightly in the sky, accompanied by the white clouds in the clear blue sky. I was getting ready to go out. My parents were planning to bring me to a maid agency. We were about to have a new maid. I was really excited as I would finally be able to have a friend to talk to when my parents are out to work and I am left at home alone.

As we were on the bus, my mum was busy rearranging the documents for the maid agency in here personal folder, where she kept every single important documents such as insurance papers and birth certificates in. My dad, on the other hand, was acting like mum’s secretary. He had to help organize the files in order and sort out the documents needed later on. As I look on, it was as though their day off from work was merely a day where they just do not go to their offices literally, but the workload is still the same.

After a ten-minute journey, we alighted at the bus stop right in front of the maid agency. We hurriedly went in, anxiety filling up our whole bodies. As we enter, we could see an Indonesian maid standing right beside the front desk. Mum and dad started talking to the agency’s overall-in-charge. We introduced ourselves to each other.

They talked for up to an hour and I was bored. Luckily, the end seemed to be near. The head of the maid agency asked mum to give the former the documents for the contract of the maid. As mum took out her personal folder, there were just too many things in the folder that everything slipped out from the folder. All the documents were now scattered on the floor. Everyone started picking them up one by one.

As I was picking up the documents, I became glued to a specific piece of information. It was from my birth certificate. I was confused. The name of the parents on my birth certificate was different from my parents’. I did not have a single idea how this was possible. Then, I saw another piece of paper that answered to my previous question. However, it did not make things any better. It made matters worse. I was at a loss for words when I saw it. I could not believe what I had just seen. It read, “Certificate of Adoption”. One thing came to mind – adoption. I do not know what to do. Should I ask my “current” mum about it? Should I do something about this?” Bombardments of questions flooded my mind.

I decided to show it to mum. She looked down and told me the truth. It was true that I was adopted when I was a 2-year-old. I really did not understand. I began to question myself, what was the reason that I was given up by my biological parents? Was I too difficult to take care of? Was I creating too much problems for my family?

All this was cleared away when mum told me that the reason I was given up to someone else was that my biological family was nowhere near financial stability. The only way they could survive with the four other children was to give me up, the youngest of them all. I felt a sigh of relief. At least I know that I was not the one that caused a problem in my biological family.

It has been ten years since this incident happened. Everyday, i would pass by that very same maid agency when go and come back from work. I am now supporting my adopted parents. That is the only way I can pay them for what they have done to me.

That maid agency brought back a lot of memories of the past. There was anxiety, humour and confusion. The main thing is, the past is gone. The only way is to just move forward. I have learned to cherish the people closest to me and to accept myself whether I like it or not.

Goodness'es Evolution

For me, I feel that people think doing good to others can help humans to form a network in order for them to survive. One factor , I think, of why human beings are willing to help one another is due to what they think they might get if they do good to others. They think if they do good to others, other people will do good to them. They have a mindset of  "if it's worth helping and doing good to others, then I should do it".

Furthermore, due to the advances in the world, relatives are easier to stay in touch with. This, will lead to them knowing the happenings and whereabouts of one another and if they know that one of them is in need of help, they can straight away go and help.

Personally, I think that humans want to do good to others because they genuinely want to. They just to feel satisfied that they are able to help someone/people in any ways to the best of their abilities. Even if they were unsuccessful in doing good to others, at least they have tried to do something. They are willing to do good because they want to feel satisified with it and to see others smiling happily because of the help that they have rendered.

Introducing my Introduction

Try walking down the streets of Orchard Road while it is having a new facelift. People have to squeeze through the walkways just to go from point A to point B because some walkways were blocked due to the construction works. Anyway, can we actually call it a shopping paradise with all the loud noise while walking along the area? Plus the fact that it is disturbing, the changes made on Orchard Road are not even that noticeable. Don't you think that $4o million is too much??

Orchard Road Facelift??

Recently, the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) had spent $40 million to give orchard Road a facelift. However, I feel that the spending is not well justified and the money could have been better spent somewhere else. According to the STB, the money was spent on planting trees, improving the street lamps, widening some parts of the malls, 35 glass panels etched with images and co-ordinated street furniture.
Even though the makeover improves the ambiance and enhances the atmosphere for shoppers, I feel that the changes were more negative than positive. Firstly, the construction work was very inconvenient to many, with many pathways blocked out, and the noise also did not make Orchard Road seem like a "shopping paradise" as shown in travel books. Secondly, many shoppers do not notice the changes in the area. When so much money was spent to 'rejuvenate' the shopping district, if people do not even notice it, it might mean that the money was not well used. Thirdly, being in an economic crisis, it might not be the right time to carry out a facelift. Even if it is really necessary, the plan should have been made known to the public, and then asked them for their opinions on it.
I have many suggestions for the STB and the makeover. The money could be used to construct elevated walkways to connect the many shopping centres together. The glass panels could then be put along these walkways, and it can also help solve the problem of congestion. Next, why not focus on the heartlands instead? Most tourists know about Orchard Road, Sentosa, and all the other tourist attractions but much of the local culture can only be found in the heartlands. This would also help many local businesses. Finally, the STB could also have polled the public and find out their opinions on the facelift and what could be changed. The facelift would then be justified and the public would also have known where the money was spent.
In conclusion, I feel that the Orchard Road facelift was not justified, and much could have been done to make it better.