Monday, 23 March 2015

Of Celebration And Mourning -- Mr Lee Kuan Yew

MR LEE KUAN YEW
16.09.1923 - 23.03.2015
Today our country mourns the loss of one of our greatest leaders and founding fathers, a loss that I believe reverberates through the world. Mr Lee Kuan Yew, may he rest in peace, shaped Singapore into the country it is today. Imperfect, as is anything and everything else, but home all the same. He understood the circumstances we were in when we first became independent in 1965, and his world view and resultant policies enabled us to thrive and achieve beyond anybody's expectations. Sure, we are sometimes called a benevolent dictatorship (thanks wiki), but he had enough benevolence and leadership to make it work. Order was kept, progress was achieved, and our people were one. For those who scoff at the concept of racial harmony, I urge you to look around, and to look closely. As mentioned previously, the JC friends and I are essentially the poster children for racial harmony. I have friends from pretty much all walks of life, all income brackets, all races, all religions, all nationalities. Today, as we mourn the passing of Mr Lee, I would like to encourage every Singaporean to also celebrate him, his life and the "little" things that would not have come to pass without him.

Perhaps I am too young to see all the imperfections of his policies, but there is no doubt in my mind that we've done pretty damn well for ourselves in a short 50 years, and that we have Mr Lee, among others, to thank for that. We made it to SG50 a peaceful and prosperous nation, and that's something to be proud of.


In some ways I think of Mr Lee as Singapore's Dumbledore. A great leader who did indeed make mistakes, but always held the interests of his people at heart. A man who's mark upon the history of those he led will never be forgotten or erased, indelible.


Thus, in true Potterhead fashion, I'll end this short post with a quote from the wizard himself:

"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, when one only remembers to turn on the light".

Let us all remember the light he gave, and strive to keep it burning.


Signing off appreciating the sunshine, sparkles and sakura petals,

Andrea

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