A Celebration of Freedom

(by: Clarecia Hoei, CS 2)
Independence Day is a very important day for any and every country. It is a reminder, a celebration of a country’s freedom and independence. For Indonesia, she gained her independence on 17th August 1945. Meaning this year marks Indonesia’s 77th independence celebration. We are considered fortunate to gain independence sooner, compared to our neighbouring countries – Singapore and Malaysia. Therefore, each community in Indonesia celebrates this day of triumph with much pride and joy, including the SHB Cambridge community, or should I say, family.

For this important celebration, the Student Council arranged an event which was held on 18th August 2022, a day after the day of Independence as 17th August is a national holiday. We started our celebration with a heart-warming flag ceremony. We watched “Sang Merah Putih” waving with pride in our school courtyard. It reminded us of the blood and tears shed by our national heroes for the sake of our country, for the sake of achieving independence.

After the flag ceremony, we continued our celebration with fun games and activities. The students and teachers were divided into four teams – Red Wolves, Yellow Lions, Green Dragons, and Blue Dolphins. This is called the “Housing System”. First, we had a “Bakiak” Race, a game of teamwork. The house which proved their teamwork to be most superior out of the four houses was the Red Wolves. They managed to win the Bakiak Race with minimum effort and struggle. The front commanded which leg to move loud and clear, and the two people in the rear followed their leader’s instructions smoothly, truly impressive. The second game was the infamous “Makan Krupuk” Race. Players race to finish eating “krupuk”, without using their hands. For this game, the Blue Dolphins showed their amazing hunger and speed, biting and chewing all the crackers, getting even the smallest crumbs into their mouths. They were victorious in this race, the ultimate Cracker Eaters. The third game was filled with perseverance, players having to hop, while the lower half of their bodies were in a sack, from one side of the field to the other. This game requires stamina and speed, a little bit of power too, as players must hop as quickly as possible to the other side of the field. Green dragons dominated this race, galloping swifter than any stallion has ever done. The last activity wasn’t any race, or any competition, but an activity of fun. We had been standing outside with the Sun shining fiercely upon us. It is a good thing, but it also made it very hot, especially since we played such active games on the field. Which is why the last activity was one to cool us down, to refresh our bodies which were overheating from the Sun and the games we played. Throughout the day, we filled a tub full of fresh water so that our players could refresh themselves. It resulted in a water fight, everyone splashing each other and themselves. It became the most chaotic activity in this event. Someone even jumped into the tub of water. However, despite how chaotic it was, we were full of laughter and excitement. Everyone enjoyed this refreshing activity. After about three hours of running, biting, hopping, and splashing, noon came. We all ate lunch together in the hall which is in the school’s main building. The school prepared a fine and nutritious lunch for the students and teachers as well. We all sat down and ate, tired from the activities full of movements. All good things must come to an end. After dismissal, we rushed back home like a colony of ants. We then continued the rest of our days separately, energising ourselves for the upcoming school day tomorrow.