Farewell Mdm Kwa, for now

 As the family of Mdm Kwa aka Mrs Lee Kuan Yew mourns and the nation pays their last respects, I couldn’t help but share the sadness that has descended upon many of us.

The press has been hot on write-ups on the life of Mdm Kwa from the time she got to know the very young Mr Lee Kuan Yew then, till what she has done for her husband, her kids and the country.

Say what we all wanna say about the Lee empire, truth is Mr and Mrs Lee did what most of us would probably fail in doing these days; a successful career, a supportive spouse, a great mother and most of all, a humble human being.  My dad had this picture which he took with Mr and Mrs Lee during one of the flights he was serving many years ago. If I recall correctly, Mr Lee was still the Prime Minister then.

To be frank, I belong to the younger generation of Singaporeans who have never witnessed the great transformation back in those days. The trials, the tears, the blood and the sweat that our seniors paddled through to make Singapore the Singapore that we know of today. While I have not experienced it, I am very appreciative of the great things they have all done for us, and for me. I can walk on the streets late at night, I have a good government, and more importantly I feel safe and comfortable in this country where I was born in. I am a son of the state and a grateful beneficiary of everything that was laid out for us.

I grief with the Lee family (I am also a Lee but highly doubt any direct blood relation) and the state, as a new gen/breed of Singaporeans who may never know what it took to get us where we are, but yet am full of admiration of not just a group of capable leaders, but a family of love. I shudder to imagine the life of Mdm Kwa in the last 2 years, crippled by illness, yet feel comforted that she was surrounded by her closed and loved ones. Make no mistake that while she has left us, it is indeed her life for the past 90 years that is worth celebrating.

I was watching the eulogy and what literally brought me to tears was the final 2 kisses MM Lee gave to his wife. I can only imagine how he felt there and then as he bid his wife goodbye. How after decades of being together with his wife, he must now walk the remaining journey on his own. It was a very touching moment to see the possibly toughest man in the country who ruled with an iron fist, show the other side of him. It is very clear, how much his wife meant to him. I am not someone who succumbs to tears easily but what touched me the most, was the love both husband and wife have for each other. They stuck together all this while, in sickness and in health, till death did them part.

To grow old and walk life’s journy together is something, that no money can buy. It is not money, nor power, nor work, but to have  your partner blow your 80th candle with you. RIP Mdm Kwa. To the friends and family of Mdm Kwa. stay strong, for in spirit, she lives in many of us. The love that I see shared between husband and wife is pure, unconditional and in my own opinion, everlasting.