Skip to main content

Friday Fire Photoshoot

By Anonymous
Ning Kang Chia
Armed with a tripod and a camera, Matthias Maurin (12) tread down the shoreline in search for the best spot for a late night photo shoot. Jessie Ross (12) and Ning Kang Chia (12) followed him silently, marveling at the mesmerizing waves and soothing sand.

It was a Friday night and the PokéOlympics were still going on. Matthias had decided earlier that the theme of the photo shoot would be “fire.” With that in mind, his bag was filled with goodies—flammable ones. He took out a bundle of steel wool and squeezed it into a whisk tied to a long wire.  Matthias proceeded to light the contraption on fire and started spinning it, much like how a cowboy would lasso. A brightening cone of light formed and sparks began spewing all over the place. Jessie and Ning were both awed at the beautiful sight.

They learnt how to do this trick soon after, and the photo shoot officially began. Matthias provided clear instructions to the modelling duo as they scrambled to strike the perfect pose. It was mostly a series of trial-and-error, as getting the perfect lighting was not an easy task. Ning’s camera proved to be the solution to this dilemma with its blinding flash. At one point in the shoot, Jessie spun the burning whisk at Ning while he blocked the molten iron with a store-bought umbrella. His pants nearly caught on fire.

The highlight of the night approached when Matthias lit a stick on fire, creating a gigantic torch. He wrapped a stick with cloth, doused it with gasoline, and a little spark was all it took to make it burst into flames. Jessie and Ning tried their best to stay still in the photo while flailing the torch around, creating an illusion that they were painting in the air with fire. Jessie was particularly impressed by this and said, “Never have still images had so much life in them.”

By then the PokéOlympics were over, and Keito Watanabe (12) joined the pyromaniacs. For the others, it was a photoshoot; but for Keito, it was an opportunity to relieve some of his pent-up stress. He (given permission) grabbed the blazing torch and began whipping it in the air. Coupled with the deafening “whoosh” of the flames, Keito felt he had immense power and enjoyed himself. When asked by Ning about this intense sight, Matthias responded with, “it’s not being childish; it’s being childlike.”

Playing with fire brings out the wild kids that always reside in us, suppressed by expectations from society. Fire makes people feel young again and rekindles their spirit to achieve. 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

DINGBAT DALAT STUDENT SPENDS PRECIOUS TIME CONJURING UP SELF-REFERENTIAL SENIOR SCRIBBLE RATHER THAN GATHERING LEGITIMATE WORK

By Anonymous
Yusoof Monawvil PENANG, MA - As the deadline drew near and the stars aligned in the night sky above the majestic waters of the Strait of Malacca, one particular Dalat student—Yusoof Monawvil (12), despite a plethora of school events to select and report on—opted instead to spend a remarkably well-wasted 24 minutes staring at a blank Google Docs page, fruitlessly drawing up and shooting down brainstormed ideas.  In a moment of sheer and undeniable epiphany, Monawvil deemed it only fitting to self-referentially satirize his own ingrained incompetence and dingbattery. Commenting on the flash of insight, Monawvil quoted himself, saying: “It all just kinda made sense. I went on DISCourse to look at the little rubric thing Ms. Grad and Mr. Hieber posted, and I checked if I was following all of the guidelines... And I technically am/was; [N]ot like there’s any specific direktive [sic] prohibiting self-quoting.”  In a turn of events, Monawvil did come to find his self-quoting en...
6 comments
Read more

"Spikeball, Swimming, and Sickness: The Remnants of Senior Sneak" by Ee Rynn Ong

By
“Guys, I think we’re here,” said Jonathan Ooi (12) as he peeked out of the lorry to catch the first glimpse of our Senior Sneak location. This year’s Senior Sneak was held in Nomad Adventure, Gopeng, and the organizers planned many activities for the Class of 2026, ranging from traditional games like congkak and batu seremban to adrenaline-pumping ropes courses and whitewater rafting. These scheduled activities proved to be some of the best highlights of the trip, but top of that, the seniors were also given some daily free time to chat, explore, and relax. Josh Stevens (12) had come prepared for this with two spikeball nets, which immediately attracted attention from people eager to spend time in the outdoor sun. The next five days saw spikeball veterans and newcomers alike, spending their precious one and a half hours daily around the unassuming circular net, smashing the yellow ball in hopes of a victory.  Caleb Evans (12) was one of the newbies to spikeball, learning how the g...
Post a Comment
Read more

“I Miss Her” by Nikhil Pillay

By
While most people had a fun week for mid-semester break, whether it was spent with family, or with friends on impact trips, no one had a more emotionally confusing week than Judson Kenneth Robert Nosker (12).  In the light of recent events, Judson, despite all odds, had gotten in a relationship with one of his classmates, and as the break started, he had started to spend a lot of time with her. While with her, he started to experience a new level of joy and completeness that he had never felt before. In the words of Judson Nosker, “The first half of the break was good, but the rest of it was horrible.”  The reason for such a quote and the roller coaster of emotion was because half way through the break, disaster had struck. Judson’s girlfriend had gone on a trip with her family to Thailand, leaving Judson all alone. For the rest of the week, Judson was in a state of longing for her presence.  His friends have reported numerous occasions when Judson would be sitting with t...
Post a Comment
Read more