I could rave and rant all day but this tale sums up a lot of stuff that’s going on in our Malaysia now.
A lot of people, good meaningful friends included, always tell Nic and me to migrate when we still are young and have lots to offer.
I think I’m stubborn. I also think I’m not an immigrant. This is my home, this is my land as much as it is theirs. Come to think of it, why should I leave and play into their scheme?
I have brilliant Malay friends but I have never looked at them as “Malays”. They’re friends. Period.
I have friends who are Muslim converts.
In fact, my youngest sis is a Muslim convert. And my parents, though initially upset, have gotten over it. I was far more upset in the first place! But see, even me, stubborn old sis, has come to grips with the idea. It’s her life. Let her live it her way.
Perhaps someone should ask us Chinese, what makes us cringe? What are the policies that make us so mad? What is it that can’t get through to their heads? What? Is it that we are pork-eaters? Is it that we make more money? What? What is it?
We cannot live together until we get that resentment out of the system.
What’s good these days (post 8 March, post 26 August) is that the worms are crawling out of the woodwork – worms which have been dormant too long. Once the worms are purged, perhaps there is hope for a better Malaysia.
I say a better Malaysia because we live in an abundant land, we speak a multitude of languages, we are far more competent that we let on. We have skills. We have resources. We have diversity.
And we certainly have more than that little island down south. (But that little island down south has exceptional marketing. They can turn anything into something. This happens when they use their brains for real stuff, not for fighting each other. That’s the difference.)
But why oh why aren’t we using what we have to go further?
Why are we still battling each other, 51 years after Merdeka?
Roz wished me Happy Merdeka when I met her last Sunday.
We aren’t really in the Merdeka state of mind if we still have pettiness in our hearts.