Thoughts on National Day

Today is the 47th National Day - celebrating the independence of Singapore. I took the opportunity to ask my children what they thought about National Day over dinner table a few days ago. Here were their responses. 5 year old: great! 11 year old: ok lor. 16 year old: I think the whole thing, including the celebrations in schools, school participation in NDP performances, the community songs etc, is a form of propaganda. I was amused at the different levels of enthusiasm displayed: roughly inversely proportional to their age. But I was particularly struck by the response of the Number 2 - struck by how she responded intellectually rather than emotionally to my prompt. I tended to think that for school-going children and youths, National Day would move their hearts rather than their minds. But since she started it, being a responsible father, I thought I shouldn't leave the "propaganda talk" dangling there. I commented that propaganda is necessary in every country, but what matters were the messages and the motives of those behind the propaganda. Then came the eldest: I think, dad, it is really hard to be a leader. They must take the criticism of the people while trying to do a good job. It is not easy. He went on to share about how his schoolmates around him tend to complain of things they are not happy about the country and how they envisage life in other countries are much better. Having taken on leadership roles in his school club, he knows that the perspectives from those who lead can be very different - they have to balance so many competing priorities to maintain the 'big picture' that it is almost impossible to please everyone. He imagined this challenge of balance is magnified many times at the level of country leadership. I think this ability to see things from multiple perspectives - including the perspective of our bosses and leaders - an important disposition. It discourages tunnel vision and encourages empathy for others (even those whom we disagree with). It also helps us make decisions that are more inclusive. But I am a little sad that (with the exception of the youngest) the children hardly displayed any spontaneous expression of patriotism or emotionally-charged joy typical of an event that is worth celebrating. But looking at myself, it is not surprising: I am hardly a good role model at that. In this regard, my wife is far better. Her actions speak louder than words: she orchestrated a patriotic rendition of "home" by the 3 younger children as a way to whip up some loyalty-in-action in them. [you can view it in Facebook by going to See Lay Keng's homepage]. Happy Birthday Singapore.