Jhender

If you haven’t, I would strongly recommend that you read Janadas Devan’s article in the Straits Times today, titled “The real Aug 9 – and the one we celebrate”. He writes on how Singapore’s real independence day was an unhappy one, one wrought with sadness, regret and a reluctant outlook for the future. I just noticed he had a footnote indicating that a similar article was published 11 years earlier. It is indeed a fitting reminder of how we were born, of our peculiar troubled history, of history as it happened, of putting two and two together and highlighting certain facts that are not so pleasant. It is terribly intriguing that he is right in stating that independence, customarily, is celebrated with a joyous outlook and promise of the future, of a future that will realise the intended dreams. How frightening that we were born without birth blessings, like being thrust forward without a name or identity or purpose. And thus far we have created our dreams – conjured them out of thin air, created our own future, promising our own promises.

I really cannot look at our celebrations in the same light anymore. I wish there was more thought into our ideals, our purpose, or something which would give us more of a soul than merely a thriving business city. Such a pity. We are like a financial institution, cash and credit without compassion. I, sometimes, envy those countries which rose out of a revolution, of the power of the people who led the country forward, of a group of people, of an ideal that gave rise to a nation. Why do I say that, because the credit lies with the people, and they feel a belonging, a sense of ownership and pride in their own accomplishments. A person can die, a leader can die, an ideal will permeate and live forever: it is impossible to kill.

I wonder if LKY, on his 44th national day parade, still think back to when he once wished we didn’t have to separate from Malaya.

P.S.

forgot a very important part:

” Because the story of our origin cannot be invested with glory, we can never look back to a founding moment. Our origin, the founding moment, does not exist in the past tense.

It exists, rather, in that strangest tense of all, the future anterior – the tense that imagines the future as though it were already now. From the beginning, Singapore has always existed in the future-present. This rare tense defines Singapore’s self-conception.”  J. Devan.

After all the french classes, I appreciate tenses alot more. Futur antérior!