When the opportunity came, I could not give it a miss.
At the end of it all, I trudged home, afflicted with raging itch from sandfly bites, chafed fingers, sunburnt skin, new friends, and newfound respect for another person.
You can get all these, and more, once you complete a 60km kayak expedition.
And this was exactly what I got myself into, once I accepted the invitation from MOE to participate in the inaugural kayaking expedition.
My kayaking partner was Joan, a lively PE teacher who, unfortunately, succumbed to sea sickness midway through our 7-hour first leg of our journey.
You see, we started from Changi Coast MOE Adventure Centre on Wednesday morning, and we had to traverse treacherous conditions before we could safely beach up at Ubin's Jelutong campsite. Along the way we kayaked past the seemingly endless Changi coast, where heavy reclamation work was taking place. It looked like a forsaken land to us.
All in all, it was a 7-hour battle against the elements: choppy waters that at times threatened to flip our kayaks over, and thunderous storm clouds that hovered over us, seemingly mocking us as we did our best to outrace the turbulent storm clouds. Futile, of course.
Straining our muscles, Joan and I pushed on, at times against the current. But she must have been feeling unwell. I could see her weakening paddling strokes, and she even stopped paddling altogether at times, and put her head down.
I asked her a number of times, "Are you all right?"
She lurched sideways and began to throw up.
There was no way anyone can hope to continue, when you are in the middle of the unforgiving sea, far from land, and motion sickness engulfs you from within.
I raised my paddle and swung it furiously, over my head, and managed to get the attention of the safety personnel on the powerboat.
Once she was hauled up onto the powerboat, another teacher, Jason, who had been resting on the boat, took over her place.
By now, we were far behind the rest of the expedition menbers, who had forged ahead. I made up my mind to close the gap, and with this new partner, I was confident of doing just that.
No. It didn't happen the way I wanted it to be.
You see, we lagged even further behind, in spite of our relentless paddling.
I looked around and realised that the currents became even stronger. We were being pushed back.
I told my partner to paddle harder, but to no avail. Instead, we seemed to stay still.
Then I noticed my partner's strokes becoming weaker.
When the powerboat came to us, my worst fears came true.
He vomited.
The safety officers pulled him over to their boat.
There's no way I could paddle a double kayak on my own. Thankfully, one of the safety officers took up the vacant front seat and we continued our journey.
As we reached Ubin, we were all exhausted, but there was still much work to be done: loading the equipment and stores to our campsite, carrying the kayaks up the shore, pitching our tents, cooking our dinner, and holding a meeting to plan for our return leg back the next day. We studied the tide tables and realised that we would be kayaking against the current again in our return journey. None of us said anything but mentally, I braced myself for another hard day tomorrow.
Before we turned in for the night, Joan and I agreed that we would stay together as partners and complete the return leg. I asked her if she's feeling ok, and she grinned, reassuring me that she was feeling much better.
The next day, all of us started brilliantly. Many of our backs were stiff from sleeping on the groundsheets and we were scratching everywhere from the vile sandfly bites. Nonetheless, we cleared the campsite in record time, thanks to everyone who packed the logistics, kept the tents, prepared breakfast and loaded the equipment onto the safety boats and kayaks.
By half past 9, we launched our kayaks, our bodies primed for another punishing day of kayaking.
This time, Joan and me coordinated smoothly, and we stayed ahead of the pack this time. Even at the sea waters of Changi, where the tumultuous waters were, we paddled continuously and steadily rolled over wave after wave as our kayak pierced through the restless waters.
Unfortunately, Joan motioned to me about her growing headaches, which severely affected her ability to continue. Soon, her condition deteriorated. She could no longer keep up with the paddling rhythm. A number of times, she leaned forward, paddle on her lap, as the debilitating combination of nausea and headache rendered her powerless to continue.
Through it all, I worried that she might not just be suffering from sea sickness, but she could be suffering from heat exhaustion, which is far more pernicious.
I splashed sea water on her, hoping to cool her down. A couple of times, the safety boat was by our side and the safety officers wrapped a ice-cold towel around her neck, to relieve the symptoms.
She flatly refused all offers to rest on the powerboat.
By then, we could make out the outline of Tanah Merah Ferry Terminal, which meant that we were less than an hour from our destination. She was not going to give up.
So what we did was to kayak for two to three minutes, then we would halt and take a rest. I would splash water on her and she would take a drink. I even lent her my Oakley shades, to keep the glare of the sun away from her eyes. Then we would resume our paddling. We maintained this routine for a few cycles.
In spite of our measures, Joan's condition did not improve. I knew that she wanted to fight to the end. But I was not willing to take any more risks. We had done what we could to ameliorate her condition. But she was feeling more ill every minute. The rocking of the kayak exacerbated her sickness further.
Finally, I called for the safety boat. Even though we would not be able to complete the return leg together, I was relieved that she could rest and be spared of the excruciating feelings of nausea and incessant headaches, once she got onto the safety powerboat.
Another teacher, Pete, took over Joan's place. Together, we powered our way back to the shores of Changi Coast Adventure Centre, relieved that our ordeal was over at last.
Driving a car became a labourious task, as I made my way home after the expedition debrief was completed.
My chafed fingers, stiff with fatigue, could hardly wrap themselves over the steering wheel.
But I am filled with a sense of admiration at Joan.
She showed me what fighting spirit was all about. I wouldn't know for sure, but I am quite certain that she must have bore the sickening nausea and headaches for a long time without telling anyone.
This is a quality I hope to possess in large measures.
In order to succeed in life, I acknowledge that it is essential to have the persistence and resilience to push on, in spite of setbacks and difficulties, in order to achieve what you have set out to do.
As for myself, I realised that, in the key moments during the expedition, what mattered most to me was not finishing first in the expedition, but it was more about finishing together with your teammate, your partner, and finishing the endurance race. Joan's sea sickness is ultimately of no relevance, for even if all of us to be given the freedom of choice of choosing our kayaking partners again, I would be proud to team up with Joan again.
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