MFA

Burnout today was reached at nine-thirty this evening after a more than optimal dose of Econs MCQs. Heh...nothing really remarkable about today, except that I went downstairs for a spot of fresh air and discovered that the jackfruit trees in the park are bearing fruit. How rare it is to be able to touch fruit still on the tree. There were fruits on trees in Thailand, but they were too high up to get too. The last time that happened was on the slopes of the Janfunsun hills in Taiwan. Tangerines shrouded in mist. Today suddenly noticed the peculiar smoothness of jackfruit tree bark, and the deep green smoothness of the leaves. And when you're handling the budding fruit, still soft and finely textured, and when you run your hand down the bark, with its layer of dust and its intimate grooves, then something in you is reawakened. Was it a rebirth, a return to nature? I don't know. That would be too sentimental. But it did feel natural, to do a Li Bai or something and start running through Frost's For Once, Then, Something under that tree =P

For Once, Then, Something
Robert Frost

Others taunt me for having knelt at well curbs,
Always wrong to the light, so never seeing
Deeper into the well, past where the water
Gives me back, in a shining surface picture,
Me, myself, in a summer heaven godlike,
Looking out of a wreath of fern and cloud puffs.
Once, when trying with chin against a well curb,
I discerned, so I though, beyond the picture,
Through the picture, a something white, uncertain,
Something more of the depths - and then I lost it.
Water came to rebuke the too-clear water.
One drop fell from a fern - and lo, a ripple
Shook whatever it was that lay at bottom,
Blurred it, blotted it out. What was that whiteness?
Truth? A pebble of quartz? For once, then, something.

* * * * *

MFA talk on Monday was very very enjoyable! Hehheh, the MFA premises itself is a splendid building, well-furnished, well-finished, with beautiful landscapes. It's almost like an exclusive club...all those splendid facilities, paid for by tax dollars, and accessible only to civil servants and other notables. And they had a not refreshments laid out for us to top that off. My group was the French-speaking one, and they got a Mr. Umej Bhatia to talk to us, and that guy is amazing, speaking Arabic, Punjabi, English and French.

It didn't really feel too stuffy at all. Started off on an awkward foot, when they passed around a questionnaire for us to fill in. Three questions: "What are some of the challenges and key interests of Singapore's foreign policy?", "Why do you deserve a PSC-MFA scholarship?", and "What qualities are essential in a good MFA officer?". It's times like these when SS suddenly comes back to you, and you realise it's not entirely a waste of time; no matter how anti-intellectual the whole exercise is, they can't stop us from raising questions about what they teach. Hmm...but still, this exercise caught me off-guard, so the natural thing was to tell the truth. I wonder what they thought of my answers, though. Was arguing myself whether or not to include what was effectively a self-denying ordnance. But in the end, decided to stick it in, since I couldn't think of much else to say for the second question.

But yeah...beside that, the session was rather relaxed, really. Their HR director was careful to come prepared with a series of topics he wanted to chat about, but beyond that, we were allowed to take the session wherever we wanted, mostly. Ranged from Katrina (naturally) to terrorism to ASEAN and the UN. It was rather pleasant, to spend a morning and a bit of the afternoon discussing not universities but current affairs, and more specifically international relations. Throwing ideas around in a rather civil and frank atmosphere. I wonder if that's typical of diplomatic work. After a while, you can start to forget that you're facing what is effectively a scholarship committee. But I guess creating an atmosphere conducive to discussion and openness is a necessary ability of a diplomat...

The MFA people came across as very intelligent...well, the HR Director and Mr. Bhatia, at least. The HR-AD was busy taking notes and didn't say much, though I think she did smile knowingly once in a while. And from the way they talk, I could get a sense of the working environment they in MFA, and the impression I got was very exciting. That level of frankness and intelligence, that degree of clear and incisive analysis, is enticing. And the way that they go on about their work, I do find it credible that they really do have unpredictable days everyday. Mmm...I do feel like I want to be part of something like that. Heh, even if they're still part of the civil service and are liable to go round and round in bureaucratic circles, at least they make the effort to be frank about it, and actively try to make themselves go somewhere at least.

Heh, they are the most intelligent civil servants that I've seen outside of the MOE. I guess the intellectual inbreeding of such a small ministry does help.

pondered by phoenican @ 7.9.05