I noticed a slogan on a teacher's tee-shirt today: Life Is A Race. This struck me as a very Singaporean idea and both sad and a touch silly. The image of the nation being 'on the next lap' and in a 'race' against others (usually a marathon) has been used frequently in the newspapers in the almost twenty years I've been here which is why it strikes me as a peculiarly Singaporean trope. It may point to some economic truth, I'm not qualified to comment in this regard, but as a personal idea it doesn't make a lot of sense, unless you choose to harry yourself in pursuit of an illusory victory.
I'm sure there are places where it's just a fact of life that you are racing for the victory of simple survival, far too many such places. But to create such demons to drive you when you really don't need to is a strange thing to do.
I was wearing my red tee-shirt with the yellow star that I got in Vietnam last year simply because it's a cheerful one to wear and useful when running as the sweat dries quickly. I'm pleased to report I completed my ten laps in a nice slow time.
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