"Water Incident"

Something happened yesterday and I named it the "water incident". Why is it called "water incident"? Well, you will understand after reading this entry.

Yesterday, I was in class doing my work. It was recess and I was trying to complete part of my homework I had received. Suddenly, I heard a loud "Bang"! I turned my head and realised that my classmate (I will not reveal the name), had knocked into a table while running and the water bottle on that table dropped to the ground, spilling the water everywhere. As I saw that my classmate was going to take some cloths out from the cupboard, I thought that he will clear the mess. Therefore, I continued doing my work.

In the midst of doing my work, I received a call of nature. I immediately dashed out of the classroom and noticed that my classmate did not clean up the mess at all, but placed the clothes over the water instead, perhaps hoping that the clothes would soak up the water. I did not care so much already at that time and approached the washroom. When I came back to the classroom, I saw that the cloths were still there, but I did not do anything. I thought that probably, my classmate would pick up the clothes and squeeze the water out in the toilet, thereafter wiping away the remaining puddle of water. Hence, I continued doing my work. But I was wrong.

Not long after, recess was over and my English teacher was standing outside the classroom. My teacher said,"Why are there cloths on the floor?" It was at this point of time that I realised my classmate had not cleared up the mess. It was also at this moment when the teacher set us thinking about what would be the consequences if the water was not cleared up.

I thought,"Firstly, if people accidentally stepped on the puddle of water, they would slip. Secondly, if they step on the water and continue walking, the classroom would be dirty, with black footprints everywhere. Lastly, if people wanted to walk, the puddle of water would block their way as they would not want to walk through the water."

At this juncture, my teacher pointed out the problems faced by people which are exactly the same as what I thought. Then, three of my classmates went to pick up the cloths, ran to the toilet to squeeze out the water and came back to clean the water.

Actually, I wanted to help them. Please do not think that I am saying this because I want to cover up for myself. As a Hwa Chong student, I practise one of the morals in J-TIGERR, integrity. If I am in the wrong, I would definitely admit it and will not come up with things I did not do. However, I looked at my classmates and thought that they were using all the cloths already and they had almost finished cleaning by the time I wanted to help them. Therefore, I did not go forward.

I really regret not going forward to offer assistance. Even if I could not help much, I could have at least asked. However, I did not know what held me back, why didn't I think that I could at least asked if they needed help or not. Was it because I did not have the confidence to do so? Was it because I was afraid that my friends would say I did that as an act only? Due to this, I became one of the people who did not ask if they needed assistance or not and I feel really bad and regretful. I would learn from this experience and not be held back by anything and do what I want to do in the future, only if it is morally acceptable.