I accompanied my aunt to church this morning in her old neighbourhood of Serangoon. As we were early, we drove around and saw how her old house (and many others) had changed from simple single storey to typically three.
After church, we had a simple lunch at home. The heavens had opened and wept for the funeral procession of Mr Lee from Parliament House at midday to the University Cultural Centre. The state funeral started and 2pm and continued till about 4pm when transmission stopped (when he was taken to a private cremation ceremony).
During my stay, I hadn’t noticed any entertainent on TV. It was all state propaganda on Mr Lee’s life and achievements, and I don’t dispute that he has done tremendous things for the nation. The speech that struck me the most was a Malay quote:
Hutang emas boleh dibayar
Hutang budi dibawa mati.
Translation:
Debts of gold can be repaid.
Debts of deed can never be
(But will be taken with you to your grave).
The Singaporean gratitude to Mr Lee for bringing them from Third World into the First within a short space of time cannot be easily understood.