Singapore is 43!

Happy National Day to all. This year defintely feels like a national day holiday to me, ahahahaha, especially when I spent last year national day in camp supporting the flypast.

Fast forward a year later, I was at home catching this year national day parade. I also noticed less homes are putting up the singapore flag this year (this is excluding the RC blocks or the flags put up by the RC people).

Surveys have shown many young Singaporeans want to emigrate overseas if they have the means and chance to do so. And according to a recent news report, 1000 Singaporeans give up their citizenships yearly and currently 150 000 Singaporeans are residing overseas (according to Overseas Singapore Unit) and many likely not going to return anytime soon. The government has also talked constantly about the brain drain and often openly encourages Singaporeans especially talented ones to stay and make Singapore a better place.

So national day, I would like to ask what does singapore means to you? As countless national day songs have sung about, this is your home and where you belong. What binds you to this place you call home?

Is it our culture? Kiasu-ism? Or is it singlish? The smattering mixture of Malay, Chinese, English and hokkien and the lors and lahs makes it easy to recongize a fellow Singaporean overseas. Due to Singapore being a mulit racial and mutlit reglion country, this has made our culture more interesting and varied. Just to name a few, we have the colourful ge-tai in the 7th lunar month which I think is unique to Singapore and Malaysia.

What about the food? That is what most Singaporeans often say they miss when they go overseas. The nasi lemak, the fried hokkien mee, the roti pratas . . .

Or is it the many special landmarks in Singapore that has became a part of your life? The wonderful two durians? The East Coast Park for one, is a ver popular place for familys to spend their weekend there. Cycling anyone? The colourful HDB flats is another icon and probably there's not another place which has public flats done up in such a specturm of colour.

For me, I guess its the many memories I have accumulated here over the years. The falls I had at the pavement downstairs when I first learned cycling and the countless fun I had as a kid at my flat's void deck. The very familiar neighbourhood shops that I goes to with my mum since I was a kid. And many still stands today. The many friends I have made in school and the crazy things we used to do. And defintely not forgetting the tough NS days.

The system here isnt perfect and certain aspects of the system certainly needs huge improvements but this is simply the place that I grown up in.

As Tanya Chua sang in the 2001 ndp song "Where I belong",

Friends and families by my side
Seeing me through as I grown and learn
Everday's experience, bitter sweet or sour
They are still wonderful
As they become precious memories
They'll be kept close to my heart

My favourite ndp song so far. I think its because I find Tanya Chua's voice very soothing and nice. Enjoy.

And i saw this line in an entry in singaporedaily. net,

To the family and friends who have lost their loved ones while they were representing the country or serving the nation, you make National Day more than just a day of pretty fireworks burning in the sky.

I cant agree more with that.

les