Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Rest in Peace, Sir

Posted by May March 26, 2015

Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Rest in Peace, Sir

Because everywhere you go, read, hear and talk about is MM Lee's passing, one day seemed like a week. There is an immense amount of information being fed through the News and social media platforms that even if you thought you could take his death well, you'd naturally be pulled into the deep like a tidal wave. I am surprised that his departure affected me this much. I read all the tributes online and wondered why I cannot churn out a single line to pay homage to the first Prime Minister of Singapore. I was lost for words - for two days.

Mondays never felt so dreary. As I was putting Faye down for her morning nap, I texted my husband, "I don't know how anyone can work today. I, for one, would like to take leave and mourn. I can't function properly at all. In fact, I just want to sit and reminisce him." Alas! Moms cannot take leaves. I decided to cut me some slack and instead of busying myself in the kitchen or throwing out the rubbish, I stayed in bed with Faye. Reading on articles after articles.

When Tuesday came, many Singaporeans were already drained by the news. I spent every available time I had reading up on interview transcripts, past and present. Digging into the Lees personal lives and feeding my own obsession to know more about our founding father. Why is it that the Thank Yous always come after eternal rest? Then again, MM Lee did not need to hear from his people about their gratitudes.

In a 2012 interview with Lee Hsien Loong, his eldest son, he shared about how his father would want to be remembered:

"Well, I think he doesn't mind what the world knows about him... He never troubled himself with that question either."

Many are fearful for the fall of Singapore after his departure but that is uncalled for. The foundation Mr Lee Kuan Yew had painstakingly laid is one more-than-solid ground. He led and with his foresight, he built our country up with a team of people. This team is still governing us and we can depend on them. He had stepped back and allowed the new generation run the country, mentoring them along the way. We need to give them the confidence to carry on.

I have fallen into what he had envisioned the future to be: Complacent. At the 10th Anniversary Celebrations of the Jalan Tenteram Community Centre on 27th June 1970, he shared:

"What I fear is complacency. When things always become better, people tend to want more for less work."

Sad but true, all of us have fallen into this trap. I am pretty sure my children will as well. Even more so than us. It dawned on me that parenting is not an easy task to undertake. Just as demanding as LKY's quest to turn Singapore from a third world country to a first world nation (in one generation if I may boast). Well, obviously in a different scale but our responsibilities as parents should not be belittled as well. We have the duty to bring up bright, respectable and promising young Singaporeans of the future! And yes, I find that pretty daunting. Just as no leaders became leaders after attending a leadership course, there are no SOP manuals to guide us through in parenting. To lead and to parent successfully take a lot of practice, wisdom and I believe, innate qualities. I hope I have the capabilities to influence Ewan and Faye fittingly, bringing them up to be righteous, filial and possibly positive contributors to the society.

Children, you will be studying the history of Singapore and we are now relishing the fruits of MM Lee's labour. There will be positive and negative debates about him, his policies, the decisions he made and the way he ruled with corporal punishment. You, as a student, a young Singaporean and my child, will need to read critically everything that is before you. Critical thinking is not a walk in a park but you will learn. Probably by Secondary School since our education curriculum jumps by 2-folds with each generation.

I have tried to engage Ewan about Lee Kuan Yew's passing but to no avail until Day 3. I am relieved.

Day 1
M: Ewan, look! This is Mr Lee Kuan Yew [on tv]. He has passed away. Do you know what that means?
E: Mommy that's my train right?

Day 2
M: [opened the newspaper] See this man Ewan?
E: [nodded]
M: This is Mr Lee Kuan Yew. He looks like a grandfather figure right?
E: Right! [scrambles away to the playroom]

Day 3
I was determined to share something (anything) with Ewan while Mr Lee Kuan Yew is still "here". Today I decided to take Ewan and Faye to the Community Site at Tanjong Pagar Community Centre (in case we couldn't get into the Parliament House) and the Parliament House where MM Lee's body lies. Logistically, I felt challenged but I had to give it a try. Without much planning, as soon as Faye woke from her morning nap, I took Ewan out from school at 11am. We stopped at his school's flag for a photo keepsake which was flying at half mast as mark of respect for Mr Lee Kuan Yew.

I told him we would be making a stop to the wet market to buy a bunch of white Chrysanthemums and we will bring it to Mr Lee Kuan Yew. On-route to the market, I pointed out to the beautiful trees on the road and shared MM Lee's vision to a beautiful garden city. The buildings he see are HDBs which give many families a home to live in. Then he exclaimed, "Look mommy! Playground!"

"Yes Sweetheart! Playgrounds are part of the HDB building project and guess who built it?", I asked.
"Lee Kuan Yew!"

Woo Hoo! My two year old plus is finally registering something about our founding father! Not bad. Not bad at all. I am proud.

At the market, we stopped at the fruit stall because he said he wanted to get MM Lee a small red-fleshed dragon fruit. Why of course I bought the flowers. Those were from Faye and I.

When we arrived at Tanjong Pagar Community Centre, we were greeted with LKY's black ribbon stickers and I wore it till the end of the day before sending the t-shirt to the wash. This visit was made mainly for my son. I didn't know how else to introduce such a respectable man to him other than involving him by paying his own tribute. We walked briefly down the panels of photographs and my little man started pointing out LKY from the photographs. I am comforted.

We headed home for their afternoon naps and I was still unsure if I should make my trip to the Parliament House. Every update from the internet read frightening news on the length of queue that could go up to an 8-hour wait! No way will we survive even an hour's queue in the hot sun with two young children. Then, as if the government heard our cries, I received information from Aunty Erica and friends on Facebook that there is a priority queue for the elderlies, disabled, pregnant and young children. However, there is no announcement on official websites as to where this queue might be. I thought it was worth the try. Let us head to Parliament House and find out for ourselves.

Along came daddy and Pat who wanted to pay their respects as well. Faye, the baby, was our trump card. Because of her, we got in and out of the Parliament House in 10 minutes. There wasn't a need to proof that she's a baby. There wasn't a restriction to allow only one adult per child. There wasn't any Singaporeans who queued 3 hours in the hot sun complaining about us jumping into their queue. Everybody were gracious, understanding and absolutely kind. I am heartened to witness such spirits from our fellow Singaporeans.

You are not allowed to bring in any sort of flowers, cards or gifts into the Parliament House but do note that you are free to leave them outside, along the river together with all other tributes.

Kids say the darnest thing. Ewan just did. Twice!

AP Dr Yaacob Ibrahim snuck up behind and praised Faye about her behaviour. How she looked so calm and collected despite the queue and hot sun. Well, I obviously pointed out to him that we went through the priority queue and praised the support from the policemen on the way in. He assured us that they are constantly changing to better manage the queue and provide an opportunity for every Singaporean to pay their respects. That explained the extension of visiting hours from a designated time-slot to 24 hours with the support of train stations running round the clock. We bade our goodbyes and told Ewan, "That is Dr Yaacob Ibrahim we were talking to."

He blurted out, innocently and excitedly, "YAKULT!?"

Oh we all know he loves his Yakult! We had a good chuckle. Sorry AP Dr Yaacob! If you happen to read this, by no means of offence, I know you would laugh with us as well. Thank you for being so personable this evening. It was a pleasure meeting you.

The second darnest thing Ewan said when we walked into the very silent lobby was, "This building is built by Lee Kuan Yew RIGHT?" in an oh-not-so-silent voice! We said "Yes Yes Yes!" hahah but "Shhhhh you need to keep your volume down."

Think I made a good decision to bring the children along. Ewan finally know who Mr Lee Kuan Yew is and what he did for us. That exclamation proved it.

The tribute was a very fast process and it felt pretty rushed. I wished I had more time to stand in front of his coffin and think about things. If we had 3 full minutes, that would have been a better closure for the Singaporeans who loved him dearly. Just walking past him (no we cannot see his face), made my heart heavy. I had tears welling up my eyes and if we were allowed that 3 minutes to say our prayers, I'd probably need a packet of tissue.

Life. We are born, we live a life, have one chance at it and then we die. The talk of living life to your fullest isn't just talk. We should walk that talk. It is important to know what you want, where your passion lies, work on it and excel at it. I found mine. I want to parent. I will help you find yours Ewan and Faye. It is pivotal and will make a big difference.

We found our way into the Parliament House through an unofficial entrance and there were no questions or rude remarks for us to join the authorised queue (which was not publicised on Day 3). We took a route that did not subject us to any human or traffic jam and were whisked in and out in 10 minutes flat. It is however more appropriate for us to share this map of the [official] queue to avoid unnecessary chaos at the site. Announced on the second day of the lying in state, this priority queue is set up for the elderlies, pregnant, disabled and families with children under the age of 6.

The lying in state at Parliament House will be open 24 hours daily until 28 March 2015, 8pm.

A tribute I read, a tribute to share:

Our tiny dot now castes a shadow many multitudes its size, all thanks to the sheer determination and grit of one great man. So Singaporeans, carry your red passports with pride and be the best ambassadors for our country. Be proud to be Singaporeans. We are the living, breathing monuments of his work. We are his legacy. Remember who made it possible for our efficient infrastructure, our safe neighbourhoods and our world class education.

Mr Lee Kuan Yew, Rest in Peace, Sir.