It seems like people are making plans for me, considering things, and idk whether I really want to go along with them. Good thing I still have a couple of months left before I really have to make a decision. Why is it that I can be so certain in camp yet come back to be subject to such external influences and pressures, and find myself being swayed to some extent?

Well anyway, I believe in a greater plan, beyond that of my/your/our comprehension. The plan isn't infallible (cause nothing ever is) but the groundwork has been laid. Nothing is certain, of course, since you can plan everything out nicely, such as we did on our NDS/Navigation Data Sheets (Oh I love the NS acronyms) but if the people on the ground don't do their part, or unforeseen obstacles pop up in the way, the plan may just go awry. No choice, detour and get back to navigating. And now it feels like I've de-talced the map limiting me to my AO and I'm seeing everything for the first time. Daunting, yet ultimately inspiring. FOCUS!

So, navigation, simply put, learning how to use the mighty prismatic compass, and an exercise which involved climbing up and down a hill somewhere in the area (codename can't be revealed) looking for checkpoints; without many defined paths, traipsing our way through the deadfalls, vegetation and drops while attempting to maintain the correct azimuth. And at night, stumbling, up and down the hill, trying not to lose my footing for fear of becoming OOC (a noun, a verb, an exclamation and so much more) and joining the pikachu platoon to eventually become a private. Dreadful waste, that. It was quite fun, in truth, especially when I imagined myself having a bird's eye view of the whole affair; cadets crawling over the hill like ants, albeit horribly pixelated, each squinting through the prism, each traveling at slightly different angles to each other, crossing paths to curse about the exercise or ask for tips about the next CP before proceeding once more. I found the section level one a little pressurizing, especially when taking point. It's lonely in front, and when you're in the middle of the forest, hill sloping up to one side, trees all around, it's quiet and you don't really know which way to go, and can't ask for help from the back, like seriously "Hey guys, I think we're lost! Any ideas?" and can only pick a direction, keep on heading uphill, and pray (I use the word loosely) for the best. Thankfully I managed to guide us to our objective, sparing me the eternal scorn of the section.

I'm determined to do well in SCS, not to wayang, nor because I harbour hopes of crossing over (the stories are terrifying..) but as a personal challenge to myself. To become more fit, and to push myself, as I did during the morning's 5km run, which I found quite okay, actually, and to make the most of the time I have there, now that I have a pretty fair idea of how I'll be spending the next year or so. I don't hate NS, and I'm pretty happy to be where I am now, in a relatively conducive environment, so we'll see how things turn out.