g******4
发帖数: 6339 | 4 Stefanie Sun
The Straits Times
Publication Date : 23-03-2015
Singapore pop singer looks to her parents as living testimonials of LKY's
legacy
I am a product of the late 1970s. At the edge of Gen X, not quite Gen Y.
Those in my generation have parents who are part of the "grateful old" - a
term I coined not to offend, but in recognition of the fact that they had
witnessed the transition from what was to what is under the rule of the PAP.
But my peers and I grew up in a different era. We read English literature
and watched American sitcoms. For us, leaders are not idolised, change is
openly embraced and alternative opinions are often taken to be "cool" and to
be a sign that one has personality.
As we entered the workforce, we heard phrases such as "Lee dynasty" and "
false democracy".
Suddenly, it was deemed intellectual for one to have another opinion about
the man behind the Singapore Story.
Human rights and freedom of the press were pressing issues of the day for my
generation - not wealth or capitalism. Nelson Mandela won universal
reverence, as did Aung San Suu Kyi. What about Lee Kuan Yew?
In the midst of this, I remembered my father's advice, that I should always
strive to have a mind of my own.
I believed it took special insight, otherwise known as wisdom, that comes
only with time, to pass judgments or form opinions. More so on a man. I
remained circumspect then.
Today, I do not see myself as a direct result of Lee's exceptional
accomplishments. I do, however, look to the people whom I love the most as
living testimonials of his legacy.
My mother once lived in what was effectively an illegal opium den, but later
moved into a beautiful HUDC apartment by working long hours and walking
home to save on 25-cent bus trips.
My father washed dishes to pay for his doctoral studies, but later could
afford to take us on holidays to Malaysia and, eventually, New Zealand.
Eventually, my son will have a shot at making it to the best university in
Asia.
He will be able to afford an HDB flat on his own and will enjoy beautiful
greenery and waterways wherever he chooses to work or live in Singapore.
He will not have to worry constantly about air pollution, clean water and
two-hour-long traffic jams. And he will be secure in the knowledge that hard
work, good ethics and a good education will get him somewhere.
Perhaps these have come to be taken as basic expectations of many of my
fellow Singaporeans. But these are needs that I have decided are important
to me and my loved ones, now and for the future.
I remember vividly my meetings with Lee. Some were formal and austere,
rather quiet and awkward - or at least in my imagination. But there were
also fleeting moments of intimate friendliness and genuine warmth.
It was hard to not be in awe of this man. I remember thinking to myself:
This must be what it feels like to be a fan.
I remember one incident when we were to be photographed together. As I kept
a respectful distance, he impatiently asked me to move closer to him.
Another time, he was in good spirits and asked me jovially who was the lucky
man whom I was married to.
I like a smiling Harry. (This is how I address him - a rather rude way, I
know, to speak to the founding father of Singapore, and therefore, I do it
only in private.)
It felt like a very precious moment for me.
I remember singing his wife's favourite song, "Que Sera Sera", at the
Business China Awards in 2011, not long after her demise.
(Senior Minister of State) Josephine Teo later told me in private that she
saw tears in his eyes. That was probably one of my proudest moments as a
singer.
【在 g******4 的大作中提到】
: 我出生於1970年代，徘徊在X與Y時代之間。
: 我這一代人的父母很多屬於“感恩的老一輩”：我無意冒犯，但卻是因為我知道他們見
: 證了在人民行動黨執政下的轉變。
: 但我和同齡朋友卻在一個不同的時代成長。我們閱讀英文文學以及收看美國情景劇。對
: 於我們而言，領袖不是偶像，我們樂於接受改變。對於另類的意見，我們都認為是一件
: 很酷的事情，而且是一個人很有性格的標誌。
: 開始工作之後，我們接觸到了所謂的“李氏王朝”和“假民主”這幾個名詞。
: 霎時間，對於這個新加坡故事背後的人，持有一些不同意見的人成了知識分子。
: 對我這一代的人而言，人權與新聞自由比財富和資本主義來的更重要。曼德拉、昂山舒
: 吉備受世人推崇，而李光耀先生有如何？
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