Generation C19
A Different Holy Week (Trisha Khoo)
On the recent Good Friday evening, I pondered again the meaning of sacrifice. Our Prime Minister addressed the nation and drew the parallel of Christians commemorating the sacrifice of Christ with the many sacrifices that all Singaporeans have to make in this COVID-19 season. I am usually very busy with work at this time (Holy Week) with the many services leading up to Easter. But it has been starkly different this year. The circuit breaker measures have meant that religious organisations are not allowed to hold their usual services or gatherings, making us rethink how we function - this...
The Isolated Elderly (Renita Sophia Crasta)
Covid-19 has proven to be an unprecedented factor in many aspects of our lives, for many segments of our population. The virus has single-handedly succeeded in uncovering gaps that we may have so often deigned to overlook, while building bridges that we might not have thought possible in our lifetimes. Amidst it all, our vulnerable groups in society have been the most exposed to elements of the strong Covid winds, leaving in turn many segments of society disrupted, and giving rise to unprecedented thought and reflection too. One such group has been our elderly. For elderly who have expected and...
What We Can Do in Solitude: A Teacher’s Testimony (Ow Yeong Wai Kit)
Even in solitude, there is so much we can do for others. One of the most sterling examples of social action is the Bangladeshi poet and migrant worker Zakir Hossain Khokan, who raised funds for workers confined to their dormitories during the circuit breaker period and arranged for essential supplies like masks to be distributed to them. Last year I invited Zakir, a two-time winner of the Migrant Worker Poetry Competition, to address my school’s Literature students and share his poetry about life as a migrant worker in Singapore. Our students were enthralled by his heartfelt and bittersweet account of...
On Time, Space & Energy (Nurul Amillin Hussain)
Much like the rest of Singapore, I’ve spent most of the last 2.5 months at home, adjusting to a new and indefinite normal. I’ve been struck by how stressful managing both time and space becomes when one seems to stretch on forever (time) and another becomes impossible to negotiate out further (space). No one can really go anywhere, and whole families are essentially stuck in varying levels of conflict that need to be immediately diffused in order for anyone to get anything done. I stay home with a retired father and a homemaker mother, and our best bet at avoiding...
The Social Harmony Advocate (Nazhath Faheema)
“I feel with you about Ramadan this year. It is different. It is difficult but I believe God has His purpose and He can make it a deep experience for all of you. Blessed Ramadan for you.” These were the words of Bishop Terry Kee of Lutheran Church in Singapore, who reached out to me after seeing my “feeling sad” post on Facebook. The woes of the COVID-19 did not hit me until 23rd of April 2020, the first evening of Ramadan this year. I realised that I could not visit my parents, who live a few blocks away...