As American musical superstar Beyonce has sung a hundred times in her 2011 hit song — "Who run the world? Girls!"

That song echoed in my head as I attempted to haul myself up the low rope in the standard obstacle course (SOC).

The female instructor who demonstrated the exercise made it look easy. I was all pumped up for it, only to discover it was anything but a walk in the park. Perhaps for someone who signed up for a gym membership but goes only three times a year, this shouldn’t be surprising.

I grunted as I tried to loop the rope around my foot to create a step and heave myself up. After what felt like a long minute, I looked down to see that I was only 50cm above the ground. What?

I was among the 111 participants balloted out of almost 600 applicants to “book in” to Maju Camp for the second instalment of the Women’s Boot Camp over the weekend of Sept 7 and 8.

The camp is an initiative of the Advisory Council on Community Relations in Defence’s family and community council supported by the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF). It is organised by Ang Mo Kio Women’s Executive Committee.

Bunking in with eight other women, I found that they signed up for the camp with one common goal — to experience a slice of National Service (NS) life and get a taste of what their husbands, boyfriends, brothers or sons go through.

Madam Jeanette Chan, my section mate and a 46-year-old mother of two, was one of the most enthusiastic participants at the camp. 

Her candour and never-say-die attitude was a big morale booster for me as I watched her make the SOC look easy-peasy.  

As I don’t have brothers and the only man in the house — my father — was exempted from NS because he was sickly, the only stories I have heard about NS were from my partner who enjoyed the times he went outfield with his helmet, load bearing vest, 20kg field pack and a SAR21 assault rifle in tow.

Thankfully, I had to wear only a helmet while attempting the nine-station SOC which, depending on one’s aptitude, was either easy or daunting. I clearly found it daunting, struggling as I did just to climb the low-rope station.

The author trying about the 8.9kg Matador weapon.   Photo: Ooi Boon Keong/TODAY

As the activities were curated to cater to participants of the various age groups, we were all exempted from the wall, apex ladder and balancing beam in the SOC, three additional obstacles that NSmen have to clear.

Imagine my relief. I mean, I couldn’t even climb over the rubble, which is essentially a scaled-down version of the low wall, let alone the full-scale one.

A SLICE OF NS LIFE

To get a full NS experience, I made sure I tried every activity available, from eating the field rations, which frankly looked like cat food but was surprisingly palatable, to donning the full battle order and handling the SAR21 rifle. My SAR21 experience was quite an intimidating one. 

“Don’t point your rifle at another person and keep your finger out of the trigger,” my section trainer said sternly as she showed us how to load the magazine and the rifle as well as several firing postures.

We had two rounds of practice before a firing exercise with blanks, where I trudged to my firing station, picked up the rifle, and pulled the cocking handle as hard as I could.

The piston jammed.

“IA! IA!” my instructor yelled the abbreviation for “Immediate Action”, took the rifle from my hands and started rectifying the problem.

A few quick expert moves within several seconds, she turned and said: “Problem solved, you’re good to go.”

I barely even had time to adjust my helmet and wipe the sweat that was trickling down my face!

Even when we were only firing blanks and wearing earplugs, the sharp crack of the first shot was enough to jolt my body and send my heart pumping.

I was not expecting the boot camp to knock me out but by the end of the day, I was so exhausted I fell asleep the moment I hit the bed.

As I completed the boot camp the next day, I thought about how impressed I was with the professionalism of the section trainers I had met. Most of the instructors at the boot camp were female SAF officers and specialists.

They were completely at ease at handling section weapons like the M203 Grenade Launcher, the 8.9kg Man-portable, Anti-Tank, Anti-Door (Matador) weapon and the Section Assault Weapon, a light machine gun.

Yes, I have heard great stories about women in the army.

But to interact with these female platoon commanders in charge of numerous men, and who can make firing a machine gun looks so easy, gave me a newfound appreciation for the women in green.

They could even complete the SOC in six minutes when I took the same amount of time just to catch a breath!

These are women whose unyielding devotion to duty and country is something bigger than oneself. These are the daughters of Singapore. 

As my section trainer Claire Shen told me: “The peace in Singapore is something that we have to be very thankful for and it’s something we take for granted.

“What are we going to do if something happens to Singapore? I don't want to be a damsel in distress, I want to find a way to take care of my loved ones.”

When I shared my experience with my partner and male friends, some were a little dismissive, noting that the two days I spent were nothing compared to the months they spent in training. 

But I guess I can’t complain, as I used to think their problems were trivial too.

Now that I’ve gotten a tiny taste of NS, it turns out I could not be more wrong. The next time I hear anyone speak of their NS experience, I'll make sure to give them the time of day — whether it's about their days in outfield or a mere grumble about an encik (a superior).

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Nabilah Awang is a reporter with TODAY.