happy belated birthday, singapore!
yes, i know. i’m late again.
national day was 9 august, and i’m only writing about this on (let’s see)… 13 august!
oh well, better to be late than never, i guess.
***
going back into time by a couple of months, i first heard the ndp 2007 theme song on television. the song was sung by kit chan with lyrics written by jimmy ye. since both of them are very talented local artistes, i naturally had high expectations of the ndp 2007 theme song.
however, after listening to the song, i was pretty disappointed - both the music and lyrics didn’t speak to me, unlike the previous ndp song that kit sung - home. has our local artistes lost their touch, or had i grown too cynical to appreciate the song?
why? why didn’t the song touch me? do i not love singapore as much as i did in the past when i was much younger? what happened?
questions, questions.
in the days that followed, i’ve had the opportunity to listen the song a few more times and i realised that the song gradually began to speak to me.
the song was reflective of what singapore is going through as its citizens become more globalised and well-travelled. we’ve come a long way from what we used to be - a fishermen’s village. our people are now well-educated with broadened horizons. as the world becomes smaller, we’re now encouraged to look outwards.
and the song reflected all of that.
we might have been to major cosmopolitan cities such as london, paris and new york and experienced their cultures and ways of living. however, no matter how glitzy or seductive those cities were, the ultimate place that we miss…the country where we were born and raised.
the ndp 2007 theme song - there’s no place i’d rather be
it’s true. our family, our friends are all here. how far can the pod fall from its tree?
and yes, we lament about our lack of freedom here, about the high yet ever-increasing costs of living, about the stressful and overbearing hectic lifestyles…
but yet, we also enjoy the stability that this country offers us, the honest leadership, the meritocracy system that we’re not judged based on our colour or race.
for that, i still am thankful.
happy birthday, singapore. may we grow and mature together - blissfully, peacefully and happily.
