RISE TO A NEW SUN. LIVE!
Stay positive, that’s the advice as we usher in the new year
MANY of us can’t wait to see the back of 2017, a year that posed difficult challenges and tests. And as we make the countdown to 2018, many of us scan the horizons for inspiration or any indications of silver lining.
To some, 2017 brings scary memories. To others, the passing year may have brought bountiful harvest.
Hopefully, the new year brings good health and prosperity for all. Stay positive — that’s the advice everyone is giving in the last few days.
I’m sure by now your mobile phones are full of new year messages, with creative designs of posters and cards.
Digital greetings help cut costs and are just as good, if not better. Yes, they also eat up a lot of space and have to be deleted fast.
I sent these words uttered by Nelson Mandela to some friends who had a rather poor year.
Mandela had struggled to keep his head above water in his fight to free South Africa from apartheid.
He survived imprisonment, a good many years of that held in solitary confinement.
Mandela said: “I’m fundamentally an optimist. Part of being an optimist is keeping one’s head pointed to the sun, one’s feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested. But I would not and could not give myself up to despair.”
I showed these words to Lee, a young business executive who appeared dejected one morning over breakfast.
He was so depressed when he was told by his boss that his performance for the whole year was below par.
He was ready to give up and return to his village to help at his father’s farm.
I felt for this young man who’s only 30 years old, as he poured out his heart saying that life is meaningless and an unending struggle.
“Uncle, you wouldn’t know what I go through. I don’t see anything in front of me except more struggle and heartache. I’ve done everything. I can’t be struggling forever,” Lee said.
There wasn’t much I could do to raise his spirits. We went on to talk about fishing and football and his eyes lit up a bit. When I asked him when was the last time he went fishing, Lee said he hasn’t touched his fishing rods for months.
I shared some professional experiences of my own with Lee, hoping that it would lift his sagging spirits. Other than his fishing buddies, Lee has no girlfriends, meaning his life is centred only upon one goal — professional success and career advancement.
“Get a life, Lee! Career advancement is important no doubt. But life is more than sales, charts and profit and loss. You have no girlfriends, you have not gone fishing, you seldom watch football anymore and you spend all hours doing nothing but work.
“Something is missing in your life, young man! Go back and see your parents. If you think that you have a tough time, go check out your parents and see how they struggle and yet cope with life very well,” I told Lee.
I invited Lee for overnight fishing, a therapeutic outing for some.
Lee used to be an avid angler, going to many places looking for sebarau (hampala macrolepidota), baung (mystus nigriceps) and wild tilapia (oreochromis nilotucus).
I told him: “Tomorrow, when the sun rises, we should all greet the new year with optimism and cheer. Life can’t be all that bad!”
Lee left me at the kopitiam with a promise that he would visit his parents and pick up his fishing rods to go for a bit of fishing next weekend.
Lee is hardworking, but he misses the big picture, and therein lies part of his problems.
Those who stayed focused on their tasks and assignments in life did well. The world is for those who strive to challenge their own limitations.
These individuals wouldn’t have gotten anywhere near fame and glory if not for their positive attitude and careful nurturing of their talents.
My young friend Lee has talents, but he got sucked into the daily struggles of bread and butter.
He forgot his roots, laid off his passion for the things he liked, and got tricked into believing that countless hours spent in the office would guarantee success.
He used to stop and smell the roses. Not any more in the last couple of years.
Lee’s parents toil every day to raise four children. Two have gotten married and the youngest is still studying. Senior Lee used to tell me his woes, with friends and relatives looking down on him each time he borrowed money to send the children to school.
Senior Lee still tends to his small farm. On weekends, he would take his farm products to the nearby market to sell.
“Saya orang susah. Dulu pinjam duit mau kasi anak-anak sekolah. Semua orang hantam sama saya. Sekarang, anak-anak tolong. Saya baru beli kebun mau tanam musang king. Lu mari saya punya kebun saya belanja baik punya durian.
“Ini hari orang hantam sama kita. Kita jangan lawan. Bila kita sudah senang, kita panggil semua orang makan besar,” Senior Lee told me often.
(I’m not rich. I used to borrow money to send my children to school. Everyone looked down on me. Now my children are helping me a bit. I just bought a small orchard. I plan to plant musang king durians. You must come over for some good durians.
(People may look down on us. Don’t fight back. When we are better, we call all these people and invite them to a big feast.) Happy New Year, people!
Let’s move on to better things in 2018!
Those who stayed focused on their tasks and assignments in life did well. The world is for those who strive to challenge their own limitations.