Our dear Jorge is enlisting in Sept this year. He has no idea what national service is going to be like and how he is going to live through it. Who better to pester than Julian Wong (right), the playwright behind half of Wild Rice's Own Time Own Target comedy doublebill?

Youth.SG: How was the NS experience for you?
Julian: I loved it. I had just come back (circa 2005, where Julian had returned from England after completing his GCE A Level) so NS was a painful but eye-opening and soul-searching experience at that point in my life. I needed it, really. My NS was a sort of orientation to life back in Singapore and to some extent, it also prepared me for the working world. Truth be told, I think NS made me grow so much more than living abroad. I also met some wonderful colleagues and superiors.

What did you dislike most about NS?
The huge volume of paperwork – there’s a ridiculous amount of paper, resources and money being wasted for a lot of things. You had to write a report to justify the purchase of something like a hole punch, and submit it to several officers in order for it to be approved. I ended up bringing my hole punch and many other items from home.

What do you think is hardest to overcome in NS?
I think the hardest thing to overcome is oneself. For some guys, NS is the first time when they’ve had to reluctantly get off their high horse because nobody really cares if you were the captain of your school’s debate team or your father’s a high-ranking government official. I know several guys who became very bitter from questioning why they had to do what they had been asked to do and it’s quite sad. I say as long as it doesn’t kill you and doesn’t involve sexual harassment, just do it.

Accepting the differences of your bunkmates, how do you do that?
Misery needs company, so instead of focusing on what divides us, I try to seek out the invisible line that connects us all. I believe we are more similar than we think we are. But thank god for the differences, right? I mean, if everybody was like me, the world would be an utterly dull place to live in. All the characters in Botak Boys are inspired by people I met in NS.
You are only allowed to bring five things into camp! What are the five things? Why these items?
Notebook (not everyone’s interested in listening to you, so write!), photograph of a loved one (provides motivation and a sense of familiarity), guitar (music hath charms to soothe the savage beast), face wash (you’re not always going to have time for a shower) and a thick hide (because nobody said it’s going to be easy).

To overcome stress in NS, what do you think is the best thing to do?
I always had my notebook to write in, and I found it extremely cathartic. I’m quite the introvert so I'd schedule a little alone time for myself. My unit was near a SAFRA club so on some days, I’d go swimming during lunch time. I tried to exercise and eat healthily so that I’d be less sleepy after lunch. Unit politics can be stressful, so I made it a point to distance myself from the politicking and the players. I relished opportunities to get out of the unit often for some fresh air, so I’d volunteer to run errands which required me to go to some other unit or camp. I had fun scheduling things to do and friends to meet during the evenings or the weekends. So I had something to look forward to each day.

What mindset do you advice pre-enlistees to best have?
Just be yourself and try to see the lighter side of things. I think if you try hard enough, there’s always going to be some comedy and music you can seek out in any situation. If you can get off your high horse and be open to learning as much as you can, NS is going to be quite fun. Take it one day at a time and keep telling yourself that it’s going to be okay, because it really will be.

Great advice there. Thank you Julian! JS

Own Time Own Target happens at the Drama Centre Theatre from Jul 8-25. Tickets are available from Sistic.

PHOTOS: WILD RICE