As Malaysians, most of our patriotism was well ingrained in our hearts since our early schooling days. Ya’ll still remember anot your sekolah rendah memories??
Test sikit – see if you can still recite the Rukun Negara ??
In the spirit of Hari Merdeka, let’s take a walk down memory lane and reminisce on some of our fond and quirky memories we Malaysians shared from our school’s annual, month-long national day celebrations…
1. Jamuan Hari Merdeka, a Potluck FEAST but don’t forget to bring back mom’s container !!!
Do you remember your class teacher discussing with your classmates who’s bringing what for your school’s annual Merdeka celebration feast? Gotta curate that perfect menu, people!
Then have to go home and ask parents for help to cook or buy stuff to bring come the D-Day ?
It was a treat to taste the food carefully prepared by teachers and parents!
BUT don’t you DARE forget to bring back home mom’s container after the jamuan session.. or worse it gets stolen or lost ..
That’s why you must label your container with your name on it BIG BIG.
2. Preparing your best traditional outfit a day before your school’s Merdeka celebration day
Schools usually make it mandatory for students to come for the national day celebration decked in any Malaysian traditional clothing to showcase the colourful diverse cultures of our nation!
You’d pick out your favourite traditional wear you own, make sure it’s all iron out and hung the night before school – maybe even picking out a matching coloured ribbon to wear in your hair to complete the fit.
But it can get stressful if teachers and parents make sure your school shoes are clean and white for the national day celebration because later you have to quickly kapur your shoes..
3. Struggling to draw the Jalur Gemilang
Out of the many Merdeka related competitions Malaysian schools held, the colouring or poster making comp has to be the most common one. But it’s also damn stressful because it’s SO HARD to draw the Jalur Gemilang right!
There’s 14 points to the star on our national flag as well as 14 stripes and that amount can get hard to keep up with for an accurate drawing …
The struggle was too real.
4. Endless singing of our many patriotic songs…(They’re hella catchy though)
From “Keranamu Malaysia” to “Tanggal 31” by Sudirman, our teachers would ensure we knew the words to these songs by making us sing them often during morning assembly time to amp up the patriotism.
There’s one thing for sure though, all the songs were a bop and we’re still surprised how we can remember the lyrics of the songs till this day!
5. Do you still remember these iconic kid treats?
Part of the Merdeka celebration is also having sweet treats during the Jamuan session. Which one did you look forward to finding on the day?
Do you still remember enjoying this legendary “Eyeglass” chocolate beans?!
6. The classic Malaysian schools’ Merdeka Fashion Runway Competition!
Honestly, no Merdeka celebration is complete without a good friendly Fashion Runway Competition amongst your schoolmates! This is when the fashionistas and the divas of the school would crack their brains to craft an outfit that will blow the judges away and gain loud cheers from friends.
Check out this young boy’s whole get-up!
7. Competing with friends to win the “Best Decorated Class” during Merdeka month
We can’t forget the team effort our classmates would foster when trying to win most well decorated class in accordance with our indepandace day..
Some say it’s just the way of schools’ to use cheap labour students to do-up the classrooms all nice during Merdeka but whatever the case, it’s no doubt that at the end of the process, it was pretty satisfying to see your class all decked out with Jalur Gemilang and our national symbols and colours.
SO, feel old yet? Which school Bulan Kemerdekaan memory are you most fond over? Share with us your heart-warming stories in the comments, folks! We love hearing from you.
Happy 66th Independence Day, Malaysia! Thank you for all the sweet memories and colours you’ve brought into our lives ~
Also Read: 11 Merdeka Food Promotions To Enjoy From Now Till September 2023!
