Singapore Turns 59

Remember how we always say ‘it doesn’t rain on National Day’? Well it did this year. At least it stopped right before the official start of the annual National Day Parade (NDP). Even if nobody minded the rain, to have everything soaking wet would be a tad annoying. Not that people wouldn’t have been drenched in perspiration from our relentless heat and humidity.

I paid scant notice to the National Day Parade. It’s not my thing lah. I would just read the summary of the events in the official channels and on social media. This year’s NDP show’s creative director is Brian Gothong Tan. From all NDP previews, it’s a coherent and cohesive one. 

Singapore turns 59 this year. The theme of the National Day celebrations this year is ‘Together, As One United People’. Apparently, we celebrate diversity and inclusivity. I certainly hope so. In Singapore social spheres, inclusivity and diversity are celebrated insofar it complements social norms and don’t push the limits, and preferably adhere to all religious sensitivities. 

What I surprisingly paid notice to, are the songs. There’s an original composition sung by Amni Musfirah, titled ‘Hold Up the Sky’. It’s written by Kaylene Tan, composed by Bang Wenfu. It’s nice… catchy and very cliched. The segment at the show was absolutely stereotypical, with a familiar voice talking about mudflats. Ugh. Never mind.

I didn’t bother about the official theme song, #sorrynotsorry, but what I really liked, is the original composition by weish and Claude Glass (Isa Ong) — ‘Horizon’. It’s not your typical four-chord ra-ra Parade song suitable for mass sing-alongs. It’s done weish-style. Sent chills down my spine when I listened to it on repeat.

I wish Singapore would truly embrace diversity and make a continued concerted push beyond the horizon. Let’s not sit around and point fingers and make snide remarks about ‘liberal weird people’ who aren’t your everyday neighbors. Make the everyday fun! Stop being insular. Stop complaining about trends and thw chamging world and new habits. Stop harking back to ‘how things were done’. Singapore is an odd engineered construct that ought to be protected. But not to be conservatively ostracizing. Let’s embrace weirdness. We’re all little oddities.