Wan of a Kind V2.0

Yesterday was Father’s Day. Many of us, no doubt, seize the occasion to reflect on the challenges and joy of fatherhood. I posted on my Facebook that I am a proud and happy father and I thank God for all my three children. On my Instagram I posted a picture with my three children, Li-Ann (42), Li-Lynn (39) and my son (35) with these words, “Only yesterday, we were huddled on one couch…” Li-Ann posted on her Facebook a set of my pictures with the following remarks, “Happy Father’s Day to a real Renaissance man, though you will always be “Dad” to me. xoxo”. Li-Lynn posted on hers: My son and I talked on our facetime. 42 years have passed since I became a dad for the first time. How did I manage as a father? I guess, their messages answered my questions in part. Strange that none of us went to school to learn how to be a father, but somehow we managed. I grew up with an absentee father for the most part. He was, from my recollection, a friendly s...

There is no doubt that our roads and highways are getting more congested even though ERP gantries are more ubiquitous than ever before. There appears to be more vehicles sharing limited space which makes kindness on the roads even more relevant. By kindness on the roads I am thinking about being careful not to inconvenience or harm fellow road­users. Being considerate is an important value of kindness, and very often being kind and considerate is often spoken in the same breath as in “She is unfailingly kind and considerate.” Not to inconvenience or harm others is to be unfailingly kind and considerate. Applying this attitude to driving, it implies attentiveness and thoughtfulness, co­operation and patience. In sum, it implies a degree of civility in our relationship to others. Abdulla M. Abdulhalim, a PhD candidate and a President’s Fellow at the University of Maryland told the Huffington Post, "We like simple definitions. Civility really is a more broad term com...

Mother's Day is a relatively modern “special” day. It was officially celebrated by the Americans in 1914 when Woodrow Wilson signed the proclamation setting aside the second Sunday in May, as a national holiday to honour mothers. However, it was first celebrated in 1908, when Anna Jarvis held a memorial for her mother, Ann Reeves Jarvis, in Grafton, West Virginia. She campaigned to make "Mother's Day" a recognized holiday in the USA in 1905, the year her mother died. Her mother was a peace activist during the American Civil War of the mid 19th century. She was carrying out acts of kindness by caring for wounded soldiers on both sides of the conflict. The original Mother’s Day was created by her as Mother’s Day Work Clubs to address public health issues she encountered in taking care of the wounded. In setting aside a day to honour mothers, whom she aptly described as "the person who has done more for you than anyone in the world", Anna was also hono...

Easter is a religious holiday celebrated by Christians around the world.  For these Christian friends, Easter is about their faith in the resurrection of Jesus Christ whom they believe to be Lord and Saviour.  The resurrection from the dead gives them hope both for the present as well as the after-life.  I posted an Easter greeting last Friday as follows: “He is risen” announced the angels some 2,000 years ago.  Since then Christians around the world celebrate Easter Sunday every year.  To all my Christian friends, I do wish you a blessed Easter filled with Hope, Faith and Love.  To my friends of all faiths, I wish you the same,  for hope springs eternal in our hearts when we have faith in the good that only love can accomplish.  So Happy Easter, one and all.” So much has already been written by so many about the good that was seen at the Padang where thousands queued day and night to pay respect to the late first Prime Minister of o...

I have just received some copies of the latest Infocus , a Ministry of Manpower publication for employers of foreign domestic workers. The cover story Kindness is the Movement is an interview I gave to its writer. What are some ways in which employers can help FDW adapt to living and working in Singapore, I was asked. Though we had never engaged a FDW, I had spent periods of time with families with FDWs and I shared some of my observations of the way FDWs are treated that facilitated their happy adaptation. They include, The children addressing them as aunties – there is respect shown to them They are given good accommodation, meaning, their rooms are adequately furnished They have television set and watch local news and other programmes during their rest times They are encouraged to read local newspapers They are given a day off and encouraged to explore Singapore They eat out at the same table with their employers like a family member. I bel...

On Wednesday 18 th of February, more than a billion Chinese around the world welcomed the dawn of another lunar new year. In traditional Chinese astrology, different animals symbolize the character of the year in a twelve-year cycle. This New Year happens to be the Year of the Goat. Some prefers to call it the Year of the Ram, and yet others, the year of the Sheep. In Mongolia, they prefer their gazelle! There are people who debate about which is the correct animal. According to an official Xinhua news agency, some scholars argue goat is a better option for the traditional Han Chinese holiday, as it is a more commonly kept farm animal for the dominant ethnic group in China. But many Chinese folklorists think that the debate misses the point. What is important is the connotations of the sign rather than the specific nature of the animal. The symbol 羊 (yang) can refer to any member of the caprine family. For example, a goat is a "mountain yang", a...

In the wake of the Charlie Hebdo tragedy, many have commented on the episode in our newspapers. Most of it is focused on the question of the extent of freedom of expression, and responsible journalism, especially when the discourse has to do with religion in the context of our own multi-religious ethos. Not surprisingly, of course, there is an outright condemnation of the terrorist attacks. Even on social media discussion, there is overwhelming agreement that the attacks cannot be condoned, let alone justified, and that the perpetrators must be brought to justice. A far more divisive discussion, is whether or not Charlie Hebdo had somewhat provoked the situation by its disrespectful satire of religion. Many seem to follow the line of thinking that freedom of speech isn’t freedom from consequence or freedom from responsibility, and that if one decides to pull the tiger’s tail often enough, at some point in time, the tiger is bound to bite back. Having said t...