In the words of C. Hoppe,

I hope that my achievements in life shall be these - that I will have fought for what was right and fair, that I will have risked for that which mattered, and that I will have given help to those who were in need, that I will have left the earth a better place for what I've done and who I've been.

On Life

During my Appeal Interview into the National University of Singapore:

Prof ABC: So, Dominic, your name is it? What do you want to do after you complete your studies?

Me: Sir, I would like to join either the Ministry of Education as a teacher or the Ministry of Home Affairs as a senior police officer.

Professors ABC, DEF, and GHI sit up straight in their chairs. Professor DEF leans forward.

Prof DEF: But, why?

Me: Sir, I do not want a job in banking, business, or finance. I certainly do not want a career spent chasing after sales targets or begging after clients. Rather, I want a job and a career where I can see myself making a positive difference to the lives of those around me.

Prof DEF : Ahh. You sound exactly like how I thought when I was a young man like yourself.

In recent weeks, those around me have asked about the meaning of life, commented on the insignificance of the way their lives are being led, lamented about the negativity in their lives, and thought out loud about how their lives should be led.

For those of you whose faiths lie in Allah / Buddha / Jesus, I believe that this question would be somewhat easier to decipher and answer. After all, most non-free thinkers, or those whom I know at the very least, make a conscious effort to lead their lives by the principles and values of their respective religions.

Personally, I believe that our outlook and purpose towards life should be ones which allow us to make a difference to the lives of those around us. This may certainly sound naïve or impractical to those of us motivated by extrinsic factors.

However, do take a few moments to give it some thought. Most of us will live till the age of eighty. Almost twenty fives years of our lives will be spent on studies; while another twenty years of our lives will be spent in retirement; perhaps with a walking cane or sitting in a wheelchair; and certainly, with a whole gamut of medical issues. Do we really want to spend the bulk of our lifetime slogging away after an extremely high education and earning tons of money, which we honestly cannot bring with us to the afterworld?

I strongly opine that we did not come into this world to be judged and measured solely by quantities. Often, it appears that our surroundings and those around us are obsessed with measuring our lives by figures, e.g. how many percent did we score for our latest test? AB.CD%; or what was our timing for 2.4km? EF minutes and GH seconds; or why is my bus to school taking so long? It has been IJ minutes since the last bus left and the frequency of this service is supposed to be KL minutes; or why is the latest bag / shoes in the market so expensive? It costs $MN; or why am I shorter than the girl I like? She is OPQ cm tall while I am OPQ -1 cm short; or why? Why why why? Tell me why! Do the above examples sound familiar?

Let us look beyond the gray clouds into the beauty of the evening sunset. Let us open our minds beyond society’s stereotypical and quantifiable interpretations of life’s goals. Let us have the courage to pursue our dreams, to make the most of our lives, to live our lives to the fullest, and to make the lives of those around us even more meaningful and purposeful.

As Valentine’s Day, a day of friendship approaches, let us wish God, Speed, and Good Luck to those who have sacrificed themselves so that others could reach for the stars.  A former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt, once said, “Success belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Let us all take brave strides forward and make the best of our lives.

well, how time flies. it has been six months since i enlisted for national service. quite frankly, i have learnt much within these six months. while some may label national service as a waste of time or look upon it with pessimism, i have come to appreciate the beauty of national service as a time of self-discovery and learning experiences.

indeed, during this time, i have discovered more about myself and have become a more positive individual. by the nature of discipline and regimentation, we are sometimes instructed to carry out tasks which we never thought we could be capable of carrying out. as the saying goes, "when the going gets tough, the tough get going." the sense of accomplishment and satisfaction upon completion of the task once thought to be unattainable is simply overwhelming and wonderful.

as the examinations draw near for all those who are still in school, i would like to share some quotes from the contexts of the military and war which continue to motivate me through the course of my life. i do so in the hope of sharing and spreading the inspiration and optimism that underlie these quotes, which in turn have helped me to come thus far.

- "the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams," eleanor roosevelt

- "tough times don't last, tough men do," basic military training

- "your attitude determines your altitude," a lecturer at a workshop

lastly, i would like to share an army song that is most commonly sung during route marches during basic military training. for some unexplainable reason, it has been playing repeatedly in my head.

Training to be Soldiers

Training to be soldiers,
fight for our land.
Once in our lives,
two years of our time.
Have you ever wondered,
why must we serve?
Because we love our land,
and we want it to be free, to be free yeah!

Stand up,
be on your guard!
Come on everybody,
do your part.
Come on every soldier,
soul and heart.
Do it for our nation,
do it for our Singapore yeah!

Looking all around us,
people everywhere.
Children having fun,
while we are holding guns.
Have you ever wondered,
why must we serve?
Because we love our land
and we want it to be free, to be free yeah!

it's been slightly more than three months since i was discharged from tan tock seng hospital. indeed, the memories of my times there are painful ones; having a virus infection in the brain, feeling weak and numb on one side of the body, needing the assistance of a cathether and a urinary tube to pee, having a needle stuck in my hand 24/7 so the nurses could administer the intravenous drips, the close-to-daily blood tests, the alternate-daily scans of the brain,  etc. however, in recent days, i have come to the realisation that those days of hospitalisation where i suffered much physical pain, were actually the happiest days of my life.

when you refer to the earlier entry which recounted my harrowing experience, you would probably have realised the lessons i learnt and how this experience changed me as a person. when i wrote that entry, i had just been discharged from hospital. as each day passes by, i yearn increasingly to feel the same way which i did when i wrote that entry. the unexplainable myriad of feelings of freedom, happiness, people-orientedness, or perhaps the appreciation of the beauty of leading a simple life is simply overwhelming.

as i assimilate back into the workings of society, i have come to be disgusted by the ugly nature of some people, the hypocritical and ungrateful side of certain individuals, or simply the attitudes and mindsets with which some others may conduct themselves in their personal and work lives. it is my personal opinion that at times, there is a need for us all to take one step back, or in the case of certain individuals, many steps backs; to allow us the opportunity to truly appreciate and bask in the beauty of life and living. 

as the common tests and examinations draw near, some of us may push ourselves harder to do better so as to give ourselves a greater stepping stone in our lives. however, let us remember that academic results and qualifications are really not everything in life. take a moment, close your eyes, and reflect upon these lines. look at the big picture objectively and think about how life has so much more meaning and purposes than merely that of academics and qualifications. think about how much more there is in life which we can all contribute to make the world we live in a better place for each and every one of us. examine how the principles and values which underlie our ambitions, goals, and visions are far more than academics.

this is not to say that the academics and qualifications are unimportant. rather, this is to say that we should not allow ourselves to be momentarily or permanently bogged down, frustrated, or unnecessarily stressed by the challenges which the above-mentioneds bring to us, especially in a society like singapore, where those are perceived as being more important than many other goals. instead, we should maximise the power of the human spirit which resides inherently in each and every one of us, to rise and triumph above these challenges; by constantly reminding ourselves of the greater meaning and purposes in life when these challenges confront and seem on the verge of overwhelming us.

yesterday, as i was in the taxi, i learnt one of life's greatest lessons from the cabby. the cabby spoke to me of the simplicity of life and of how life is essentially what we choose to make and think of it.

he explained that events or incidents happen daily in our lives. by the factual nature of these events and incidents, no emotions or feelings should be aroused in us. however, because we are all human, we unavoidably form opinions, arouse emotions and feelings, or simply jump to our own conclusions when these events and incidents take place. he pointed out that more often than ever, humans seemed to have an inherent inclination to perceive events and incidents in a negative way.  

as the cabby was talking, another vehicle suddenly swerved into his lane dangerously without signalling. he used that as an example to illustrate the importance of thinking postively. he told me that there were three ways in which one could perceive that action. the first, that the driver was being extremely dangerous and ought to be reported to the police or in the case of certain verbal assault specialists, a string of vulgarities would follow. the second, that of a i-really-couldn't-care-as-long-as-he-dosen't-knock-into-my-vehicle mindset. the third, that of how the driver could have done so because a relative of his could be seriously ill in a hospital and he was rushing to visit the relative, possibly for the last time.

he pointed out to me that in order to lead the life which i want to, that of freedom, happiness, people-orientedness, or perhaps the appreciation of the beauty of leading a simple life, i need to look at things in a more positive manner. specifically, i must learn to truly be thankful for and appreciate what i have, rather than lamenting and questioning myself about what i must do to get what i do not have. this is not to say that i must have a lack of ambition, but rather, this means that to be happy often simply means being content with what i have.

while the taxi ride to east coast park was $12, i learnt so much more in that twenty-odd minutes, than i did for the last 19 years of my life. as mastercard says, there are somethings that money can't buy.