Susan Boyle did not win Britain's Got Talent, but she is a winner, a winner who doesn't need a trophy to prove what she has won.
Diversity were good, so were flawless and so were the other finalists. But I am not going to talk about the finals. I am not going to talk about Britain's Got Talent. I am just going to talk about Susan Boyle.
I am 27 and I find myself old to pursue many of my dreams, many of the things that I would have wanted to do but I didn't, many things that I just gave up on thinking that I am probably too old for it, that people will laugh if they heard of me trying out these things. And I am sure I am not alone : there are thousands and millions out there who in some way or the other live a life that lets them fit in somewhere in the world that we live in. More often than not, we live a life that others have planned for us, that others approve of, rather than what we really wish to do.
So what did Susan win? More than winning, its what she gave others: a hope, a hope that you are never too old to go out and pursue your dreams, a hope that no matter what the world thinks of you, you are what you want to be. As she stood on the stage during the auditions, pretty much everyone out there in the audience was laughing: a 48 years old lady who should be sitting home taking care of her choirs is out there on the stage thinking that she is talented. But she stood there. Even as everyone laughed, even as Simon asked questions that were pretty much aimed to break her down, even as the judges gave the expressions that clearly said that "What are you doing here?" , she stood there because she believed in herself, because she knew what she was doing there. And she sang.
The choice of song was impeccable, for in a way it put onto everyone of us how the world shatters our dreams, how we kill so many of others dreams. The rendition was flawless: it hit the notes at the right places.
When she had finished singing, she hadn't just given the performance of a lifetime and won millions of hearts, she has given hope to millions that its not over till you want it to be. You are what you want to be, you will be what you want to be, just don't give up. No matter how many times I listen to that song, it gives me the same feeling everytime. Everytime, I am almost on the verge of crying. And trust me: I haven't felt that way often in my life.
So for me, irrespective of who won Britain's Got Talent, Susan Boyle will always be a winner because she has changed the way I think of life. My Life is going to be different from what it would have been because of Susan Boyle.
Given that most of my plans go haywire at last moment, it was a momentous achievement for me when I finally set out for Bukit Timah today as per my plan for the weekend. However, after reaching the nature reserve, I realised that my understanding about things was slightly misplaced: I had assumed that Mac Ritchie reservoir was within Bukit Timah Nature Reserve, and while there was a trek route from the nature reserve to the reservoir, it was going to be a real long walk, almost 5 hours. I decided against going a trek that long all alone just in case something went wrong along the way. (maybe some other day). But I did spend a few minutes at the Bukit Timah Nature reserve. Its a huge natural rain forest area in the central part of Singapore. and figured out that there are a few short treks (about 30 mins to 90 mins duration) that can be undertaken within the Nature Reserve. There's one long trek that connects you to the MacRitchie Trek routes. Being a nature trek, these are going to be through the trees and so heat shouldn't really be a cause of concern (but rain can be). Its best to pack extra water and food (as needed) because there aren't any restaurants or 7/11s(chain of 24 hour convenience stores across Singapore) along the treks :) The restrooms are also at the Visitor Center itself. Maybe one of the coming days, I will go back to trek along a couple of those short treks. 
