Critical

I have come to a point of joy in my time here as a postgraduate student here at King's College, London. Despite the fact that there are outstanding challenges that I have to face in meeting with the demands of the course and being able to afford the London life, I'd give all that for the depth that I had experienced today in realising my academic dream.

I had enrolled in a module called Religion, Politics and Public Policy. Although, in entirety the aspect of public policy only casted a ghostly appearance within how the module unfolded, it had slowly made its way to become my most memorable module in the whole entire course (although I have two modules yet to be examined, I am going to be biased and say that this wins hands down).

The reason behind this is that firstly it is within my persona to be very self reflective and deep especially in the areas of purpose of life, religion and the profoundness of seeking inner peace. This is very observable in the way I have approached most of my commentary in this blog I have (I can't believe that it has been eight years coming). Secondly, to add is also the fact that religion, its political and personal role that it has, is a subject matter that I have been highly interested in for a very long time, from a very young age.

Today, one of my closest friend in MA Public Policy, William and I were having a discussion on this final essay we have. It required us to answer if secularism is critical to democracy. The epiphany, was not that we had answered the question spot on or arrived at a very good conclusion. It was the fact that my mind moved in the way I had always wanted it to be at a very high level of academic discourse. This was what I had clearly lacked during my undergraduate days and had been aspiring to experience.

It is not that I could not afford such a debate outside the visages of an academic institution. For me, it was the novelty of having to experience a student life like that. On a personal note, it was also a great relief as there were many adjustments for me to make to re-enter into the realm of being a student. I took a longer time that most people but I know that this year, I am primed to be able to graduate with a more mature intellectual process.

I know that there will never be an end to what I can learn. But my point here is that in the midst of the debate that I had with William, there was a sense of joy that the novelty that I had always wanted has met its inspired moment. I hope that in the remaining days, that I will get the opportunity to ravel in this feeling for as much as I can.