As 2025 draws to a close, members of the Singapore Medical Society of the United Kingdom each share with us a picture from their favourite memory of the year, accompanied by their thoughts of the scene.
Rachelle Lai, Year 2 Medicine, University of Glasgow
As the end of 2025 approaches, I often find myself grasping in murky waters, in feeble attempts to fish out a singular moment that encapsulated my year. For how can 12 months of emotions, lessons and memories be distilled into a brief pocket in time, cemented in a digital frame? Yet, I chose this crater to be my emblem of 2025: a reminder that even after violent chaos, what remains is not devastation but a new landscape – reshaped by upheavals. I am reminded that not every obstacle is a hindrance, nor is every step of the journey intentional. The footsteps we leave behind often reveal their meaning in quiet retrospect, miles from where the ash has settled.
Winston Tham, Year 4 Medicine, University College London
They say that medicine is a calling and is fuelled by passion, but I believe that one's drive cannot be sustained without support from friends and family. After all, how can one still enjoy medicine if there is no one to share the interesting facts and cases encountered, or to wallow together with after the stress of constantly being on your toes. Being away from my primary support – my family – underscores the value of friendships in medicine, as they may be the only ones who can understand you at that very moment. These are my friends: the family away from family who will continue to support each other through and through.
Isabelle Lee, Year 2 Medicine, King's College London
A peculiar feeling of yearning would overcome me whenever I traversed the streets of Singapore during my summer break. Having been away for nine months, Singapore felt so unnervingly foreign yet familiar at the same time. Perhaps what had changed was my perspective of home. The SG60 decorations adorned across the facade of the National Gallery, set against the backdrop of the evening sun, showed me that Singapore does have its own little charm, something that I have grown to miss during my time abroad. The SG60 celebrations brought me to tears and served as a poignant reminder that no matter where I may be, Singapore will always be a place I can call home.
Joshua Malcolm, Year 5 Medicine, University College London
A splendid beam splits the sky – an iridescent arc that cuts through the muddy drone of the city beneath. A rainbow, a glint at the corner of your eye, calling you to lift your gaze from the rain-soaked earth and behold nature's own prism. The promise that behind a sullen sky thesun still shines; behind thick clouds and uncompromising rain, the sun still shines.
The light cuts through the darkness and drapes its victory across the sky in awesome technicolour. There is always a new day to learn, to love and strive, and to wonder at every opportunity.
Vamakshi Krishnan Sangle, Year 2 Medicine, University of Glasgow
My favourite memories of my first year are those where I spent time walking around Glasgow with people who have come to be some of my closest friends. They helped me fall in love with a city so different from home.
Nicholas Lim, Year 5 Medicine, University of Leicester
Heading into finals season, I am reminded of how important it is to have interests outside of medicine. Over the last year, this reminder came in the form of making fun little caffeinated drinks in between study sessions. What started as a way to get a quick pick-me-up soon evolved into a full-blown project as I experimented with different syrups, flavour combinations and brewing methods. The process was extremely therapeutic, giving me something creative to focus on that did not solely involve burying my head in notes and question banks. This simple act of self-care brought much joy. Even now, amid intense revision for the upcoming Medical Licensing Assessment, it continues to keep me balanced, energised and ever so slightly saner.
Christic Moral, Year 2 Medicine, King's College London
I am not really a morning person. Faced with the choice of sleeping in or going for a hike at Richmond Hill on little sleep with a dull headache, I nearly picked the former. Still, I had made a promise to some new friends, who were bombarding me with texts and calls to check if I was awake yet. I consoled myself, saying it would be a quiet morning in nature. Instead, the company of my friends turned it into a day of singing, laughing and even dancing along winding paths. The views of rolling hills, grazing deer and blue skies were beautiful, but memories of shared joy are what linger the most.
Alicia Chee, Year 2 Medicine, University of Glasgow
This photo was taken at the Scottish National Cross Country Championships in February 2025. I have been running since secondary school, but after my last National School Games race in 2023, I thought I would hang up my spikes for good. Somehow, I found myself lacing up for a cross-country race again – this time for the mud, the cold and the thrill of racing in a singlet at 10 degrees Celsius with the Glasgow University Hares and Hounds Running Club. The course was tough, but what I will remember most is the atmosphere: the cheers, the laughter and the team spirit that reminded me why I fell in love with this sport.
Jay Shao, Year 2 Medicine, University of Liverpool
I often find myself heading down to the city centre alone, to either run errands or seek tranquillity in my deepest thoughts. Admiring the serene waters and modern skyline of Liverpool always reminds me of my life back in Singapore, and that bold otherworldly decision I made with the tenacity to leave everything behind and fly halfway across the world to a stranger place. And while I have adapted and enjoy my time here, I cannot help thinking back to what my friends and family would be doing back home, as if time had stopped there. It seems like living a double life, as a swarming student moulded as a puzzle piece of an ever-competitive society and as a peaceful international student just enjoying life.
