Where Kites Touch the Soul: How Organising Mental Wellness Event Empowered My Personal Growth

As a leader of the JC LevelMind@School Student Wellness Club and a member of the Youth Advisory Committee, I had the privilege of coordinating and leading the club to host the campus Mental Health Week. Through a series of diverse and relaxing activities, we aimed to address the holistic physical, mental, and spiritual needs of our fellow students.

In recent years, academic pressure on campus has grown increasingly heavy. Many students spend their days chasing after exams, revision schedules, and coursework, unconsciously accumulating layer upon layer of anxiety and exhaustion without a proper outlet. Seeing the struggles of my peers firsthand, I wanted to leverage our club’s influence to proactively build a warm emotional safe space—breaking stereotypes surrounding mental health and integrating a culture of care into our daily campus life. This was the original inspiration that drove me to launch Mental Health Week.

From a blank proposal at the beginning to a sky filled with flying kites and a campus overflowing with laughter, walking through the entire process of planning and execution gave me a deep realization: a school activity that heals others is, at its core, a journey of personal growth and self-cultivation. Those challenging, sweat-filled days not only helped me appreciate the true value of mental wellness, but also allowed me to rediscover my self-worth and inner strength through service.

Finding a Steady Rhythm Amid Chaos

Organizing a large-scale, cross-club campus event was far more daunting than I had imagined. As the leader, endless after-school meetings became my routine—we repeatedly refined our workflows, broken down timelines to the minute, and managed tedious logistics like purchasing supplies, reserving venues, assigning staff, and coordinating across departments.

Along the way, we experienced disagreements over differing opinions and worried endlessly about bad weather or indifferent student turnouts. Waves of pressure crashed over me, leaving me breathless at times and making me doubt whether I could lead everyone across the finish line. Yet, it was precisely this series of hurdles that sharpened my emotional regulation, communication, coordination, and crisis response skills. I learned to establish a steady rhythm amidst chaos and solve problems calmly under pressure, gradually realizing that a manageable level of stress is not a burden, but a catalyst for personal progress.

Making Mental Health Visible

This Mental Health Week featured three main highlights: the Kite Flying Competition, the Mindful Photo Booth, and the Mental Health Pop-Up Fair. Our goal was to guide students toward releasing their burdens and healing their minds in a lighthearted, approachable way.

Among these, the "Fly Away Anxiety" Kite Competition resonated with me the most. Before the main event, students hand-painted their own custom kites and wrote positive mindfulness slogans on colorful flags. On the day of the release, kites carrying thoughts of worries and wishes soared into the sky one after another—a moment that brought me a sudden epiphany: this was not just a competition, but a meaningful psychological ritual of "letting go of anxiety." The kites symbolized our daily worries, and as they flew higher with the wind, the tightness in our hearts seemed to gently disperse along with them. Watching everyone run freely across the grass, cheering each other on without fierce competition—only pure joy—gave me front-row witness to the fact that mental health is never an abstract concept; it lives in every moment we relax and courageously unleash our true selves.

Living in an academically driven, fast-paced school environment, we often habituate ourselves to suppressing emotions, burying loneliness, anxiety, and exhaustion deep inside. In the long run, this not only drains our energy for learning, but also subtly damages our interpersonal relationships and overall well-being. The mission of our event was to create a stress-free, warm, and inclusive space for both students and teachers, allowing everyone to put down their textbooks and exams, pause their rushed pace, and learn to truly care for themselves.

What touched me most throughout the event was the deep engagement and warm responses from our peers. Some designed their kites with intricate care and wrote encouraging notes; others stepped out of their comfort zones to try out the photo booth; some shared their innermost thoughts on the emotional doodle wall, comforting one another through written words. Seeing everyone transform from tense and reserved to relaxed and beaming with smiles made all the late-night planning fatigue and uncertainty vanish instantly. That irreplaceable sense of fulfillment—being needed by my peers and driving tangible, positive change through real action—deeply reinforced my original commitment to serving our campus and caring for my fellow students.

Interweaving Dual Roles: Student Wellness Club Leader and Youth Advisory Committee Member

This dual identity brought me synergistic inspiration and personal growth. As a leader of the Student Wellness Club, I have always been dedicated to promoting a culture of care and raising awareness around mental health on campus. My past experiences in the Youth Advisory Committee helped me gain insights into event planning, student consultation, and mental health advocacy which were directly translated into the framework of this event, making the overall organization more robust and well-rounded.

Conversely, the experience of leading a major campus event firsthand brought me much closer to the authentic needs of my peers. Moving forward, when sharing insights and submitting recommendations within the Youth Advisory Committee, I can offer far more grounded, practical, and targeted proposals.

Looking back at the entire experience, I not only mastered practical skills in event coordination and team leadership, but also underwent a priceless personal transformation. While caring deeply for my peers' mental well-being, I learned to make peace with my own stress, realizing that helping others and healing oneself are always two sides of the same coin.

Mental health is like sunlight and fresh air—an essential nutrient on our journey of growing up. Although this edition of Mental Health Week has come to a successful close, the heartwarming moments, quiet reflections, and valuable experiences will stay with me indefinitely. Moving forward, I will continue to carry these dual roles, using gentle care and concrete action to curate more diverse, down-to-earth wellness initiatives to walk alongside every companion around me.

I firmly believe that as long as we are willing to face our emotions, relax when needed, and have the courage to seek help, everyone can lay down their heavy burdens,just like the kites in our hands that day, moving forward with the wind, breaking free from the shackles of anxiety, and soaring toward a broader, brighter sky.