Just a Thought!

I thoroughly enjoyed the movie Inception and I recently encountered something eerily similar to it but oblivious to many: the use of persuasive technology by social media and online games to influence human behaviour. It is by no chance that hordes of youths and even adults are spending more and more time on mobile games and social media to the extent of becoming unknowingly addicted. This is the engineered result of the unprecedented marriage of psychology and technology which gave birth to apps with drug-like power - so now you know why you can't resist crushing candies or checking Instagram/Facebook for the number of Likes ! I personally witnessed its destructive power in youths, causing them to neglect their studies, family and even their own health. And the saddest thing is that there is little we can do. I have tried to help one teenager through professional counselling but not one counsellor has succeeded. I only discovered the reason recently through this insightful...

Last Friday, my wife and I volunteered at the " Racial Harmony Day " annual event at Montfort Junior School . It was a real fun and memorable event with yummy traditional and multicultural food and interesting activities like rickshaw rides and whacky photo booths. Many other parent volunteers put in their heart and soul to make the event a most meaningful one for their children by recreating a " kampung " environment where Singaporeans from the four main ethnic groups used to live together and interact freely; nobody locked their doors in those days because everyone viewed one another as part of the same big family! The following photo touched me deeply and conjured up feelings of pride, security and peace because it represented Singapore 's dedication to continued racial harmony in the generations to come: Photo by Andrew Teoh @ Montfort Junior School on 25 July 2014

During Chinese New Year, I drove my family and a friend's family out in my new Touran for a fun time at eXplorerkid followed by a sumptuous dinner at JustAcia . At the end of the outing, during the car journey back home, my friend's young daughter candidly said that it was the happiest day of her life ! I was deeply touched and for a moment, was at a loss of words - I just turned back and gave her a wide smile. I struggled to recall the last time I've used the magical phrase " happiest day of my life " - it seems that Adulthood has kidnapped Innocence, Contentment and Unconstrained Joy and set an impossible ransom... Perhaps it's time to go on the offensive - to bring back the simple joys of life that make life's many challenges bearable - will contact Childhood and Contemplation on a rescue plan now!