Visit England 2008

The day after my wife's concert, we flew off to visit an old friend, Eric Maxim, in England. We first met 20 years ago while on holiday in Interlaken, Switzerland. Over the years, Eric has taught us what being a pen-pal is all about. There's something warm & fuzzy about receiving snail mail from the postman, & deliberately writing longhand instead of zipping off an email.

Now, at 92 years "young", he has shown us how to have dignity in the evening of our lives, coping as well as he has done. Sadly, he recently lost his true love, Edith, his dear wife of 53 years.

But as Randy Pausch (see previous blog posting below) told the graduating class in his "short" lecture, no one beats the "grim reaper". So may each one of us chase his/her childhood dreams & also, find true love & happiness in this (short) journey of Life on Earth.

Music & Singing

After her Kinabalu climb in May, my wife is now back with her first love : music & singing. Tonight at a Students' Concert, her singing coach, Mr Erick Guansing, created a platform for his students to share their singing passion.

There were songs from Broadway, the Movies, Jazz numbers & Chinese ballads - a potpourri which the audience loved as much as our local cuisine. And that somehow epitomises Singapore, a harmonious melting pot of many tastes.

It's also intriguing to remember Tunes as memes. They leap from brain to brain at the speed of sound. You get emotional, happy & pass it on. Reworking, remixing & in the process, creating. And they get better, for generations to come.