I participated in the A Very Special Walk VIA on 30 July 2016, located at Enabling Village near Tiong Bahru. My scout group, 01 Raffles Scout Group, has always been participating in this VIA for a very long time. This VIA serves to help those affected by autism, and it raises funds for them. It was a great carnival, with many people invited to sell their items to raise money for the sake of charity. There was a large crowd around supporting this cause. The Harvard Din & Tonics were also present, an a capella group from Harvard University which have rich traditions. They performed for those around and it was great to be around on that day. Personally, I manned and helped out in this store called The Animal Project where I helped to sell and collect tickets (the mean of transaction here). It was actually a rather fun experience, as I rarely get the opportunity to man a booth and get to interact with members of the public. We got to see a teacher from our school, and then Singapore Minister Mr Tan Chuan-Jin. We helped out for a few hours, and after the whole thing ended we got a cool shirt from the The Animal Project, with some free food and items as well. (the festival was closing, and they had lots of excess food and items) For the activity, I think that I did pretty well. One area that I guess I could improve is to interact and mingle more with the public, but they were also busy with their family as well. I would want to participate in more of such activities in the future if I have time. The activity was certainly meaningful. The fact is that in Singapore, there are many people who are disadvantaged or face a mental disability here. We often fail to acknowledge their presence. When was the last time that you ever interacted or met an autistic person? The social stigma of a “mental disability” is still shrouded deeply in mystery and prejudice, and it is of my hope that such activities seek to curb such mindsets and bring greater light amidst this permeating darkness that is way too common here. Though my act of service may be small, I sincerely believe that such small acts are essential. They add up quickly and it is these small acts that add up to something greater, toppling these incorrect and prejudiced mindsets still prevalent in today’s society. I genuinely feel strongly about this - even when we look beyond autism in Singapore, and look at other mental disabilities- Down’s Syndrome, anxiety, depression, we realize that in Singapore all these mental disabilities are accompanied with some negative social stigma. What do we really mean when we say home? Does home mean that we remain exclusive, and not accepting those who are not as fortunate as us? I do not think that is the case. We must extend our hand to those who may need it. We must look on them with smiles, not scorns. This is my sincere hope for Singapore, and I hope that as a nation we will eventually reach that goal.