I hope you grow older and wiser

This was published for this months edition of Manja, Singapore. I wrote it originally in English.
Here goes :

I recalled clearly the night of 31st December 2002. That was the day I had to say goodbye to my family, my friends and most of all, my homeland. Today, almost 4 years later, I may still call my family when I miss them, email my friends to keep in touch, but I am not able to do that with my country. My yearly visits are preciously occupied with visiting and catching up to give her much attention. Well, this will be my tribute to my country, my Singapore.

When one is abroad in a cosmopolitan country, your nationality is your only identity. And in this case, my Singaporean passport is much more than a document of travel. It sets me apart from others, but at the same time, brings me closer to my people and my roots – something that I have been taking for granted for awhile. Though being away is hard, I’m sure I wouldn’t have things to say about Singapore today than if I never left her in the first place.

What do I remember about Singapore? Oh, lots. Usually when asked about what people missed most about their countries, they would automatically say Food! Well, who doesn’t? With the enormous gastronomic selections of India to China to Peninsular Malaysia and everything in between, we do have the best of Asia in one pot. But I fondly reminisce my growing up days in Singapore the most.

I was born in a HDB flat in an old district called Circuit Road. The flat is still up there till today. I remembered learning how to ride a bike along the corridors on the 8th storey apartment we lived in. I remembered playing marbles with the neighbours kids in the small drain in those corridors. I remembered making kites out of the red plastic bags my grandma got from the market. I remembered the ‘apek’ who was always in his white singlet and beige shorts and when I have to run errands and buy things from him, I will also take the chance to play ‘tikam’ at his shop and will marvel at my winnings all the way back from the shop. I could almost hear the chants of ‘Ondeh Ondeh, Goreng pisang, Nasi Lemak’ by malay children just around my age then, who went around the flats selling their mother’s hardwork. And which child wasn’t terrified by the dark looming figure of the mysterious ‘Karung Guni’ man!

There is this row of hawkers across our flat, and when I go to school, I would have to cross these hawkers, and on the way back, I always saved 20 cents of my pocket money to buy a small glass of purely pressed sugar cane juice. Behind the hawker market is a bridge connection to my old primary school. It was on that bridge that I caught sight of my very first rainbow. It was truly a beauty to fascinate.

I can marvel about Singapore’s achievements which made me proud of being a Singaporean, but I’m really most thankful for the colourful childhood she has given me so that I may tell these stories one day to my own children. From the Javanese pakcik satay, Indian roti prata man, to the rickshaw ‘apek’, who all seems to be able to speak Malay at that time, Singapore was able to demonstrate tolerance and patience amongst different cultures in a unique and fascinating way. I hope that these relationships that was nurtured and built over the years will be appreciated and continued by our society today which has made it a great place to grow up in! I miss my homeland, but I am grateful that I still have fond memories of her though I’m thousand of miles away today.

Happy Birthday Singapore and to many more years to come!
Love from Germany