Vol. 2, No. 5 | May 2025

Farewell

“How lucky am I to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard” - Winnie the Pooh

The Last Issue

Art by Joyce Zhou

By Daniel Xu

In AT Non Fiction’s 24-25 cohort’s final issue, we look back on the past—at childhood years, school experiences, and lifelong regrets. We say goodbye to not just The Spark, but for most of us, our youth. Thank you for listening to our stories, reading our opinions, and supporting our voices—we wouldn’t have wanted anything different for our SAS experience.

The Words I Never Spoke: A Tale of Goodbye

A Food Farewell

By Sylvia Barrios Gotor

As I get ready to graduate the weight of goodbye is looming. Yet, I’m ready for a simple farewell as the majority of my emotions won’t be shared in those last hugs. The majority of my mourning will be behind closed doors and in the words I’ll never speak.

A Letter To Dairy Farm Estate

By Emma Torjeson

About leaving my child hood that I have lived my entire life in and helped me grow in, structured around birthday parties each year.

A Letter To My Favouite Place

By Minji Suk

With barely three months left in a place I will forever call home, I thank all the places that have made my memories in Singapore special.

By Adam Brest

In my fifteen years at SAS, time has totally blurred together. But when I think back, the clearest memories aren’t of tests or grades—they’re of what I ate, where I sat, and who I shared it with. From fruit circles in preschool to Grab deliveries to evade Sodexo in high school, food has quietly marked my every chapter here.

A Revised Student Handbook

By Kaitlyn Zhu

As I prepare to say goodbye, I take one final look back at my four years here. By no means was it easy, and it was definitely not as structured as the student handbook makes it out to be. As a departing gift, I give you my modified version of the handbook for incoming high schoolers.

Marked by Small Things

By Reese Min

When people talk about leaving, they mention family and friends. But what lingers for me are the overlooked details that marked my days.

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Issue 4

Obituary: A Farewell to My Childhood

By Gabriella Yeung

A heartfelt farewell chapter to a childhood filled with scraped knees, midnight ramen runs, and the bonds of family and friendship. I reflect on the end of her childhood and the memories I hopes to hold onto before stepping into adulthood.

Left Out: Being Left-Handed in a World of Right-Handed Privilege

By Devin Bush

Left-handedness may seem trivial, but it reveals how subtly privilege can flourish in our daily lives. From smudged notebooks to cultural curses, this essay explores the unseen advantages of right-handedness that you may never notice, but will never be able to unsee once pointed out.

More Than a Game: The Political Privilege of Sports Icons

By Kian Williams

Athletes have always stood at the intersection of admiration and influence. Once symbols of pure competition, they now wield cultural, economic, and even political power. But with that power comes a difficult question: where does influence end and responsibility begin?

Singapore, Interrupted

By Gayatri Dhir

On May 3, 2025, the People’s Action Party—Singapore’s dominant ruling party since 1959—won another general election, its 14th straight. On paper, the result was decisive. Politically, however, it felt different.

Learn about The Spark and the people behind it!

About us

Look back at the Issue that started it all, Virtue and Vice!

Issue 1

“I Wish”: The One-Hit Wonder on Jealousy

By Daniel Tong

Postmortem: Grieving the High School Years

By Billy Park

An elegy grieving the death of the high school years, an epiphany on the way I’ve been living life, a swansong of my time in this school.

No One Knows Where to Sit

By Stefania Sigismondi

Starting college feels like high school all over again, back at the bottom, figuring out where to sit. I’ve learned that the real freedom is in letting go of seniority and choosing to be a beginner again.

From Sardinia, With Love

By Kaavya Anuj

Every summer in Sardinia, Italy, I wrote thank-you notes to hotel staff. Years later, they have become a way to understand saying goodbye as I move to college.