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Change

• Listening to: hack SIGN - Aura

Went to work yesterday. It felt like I never went on holiday.

I don’t know if I’ll ever call Melbourne my home. When I first came here, it was new sensations and experiences. Going home to KL at the end of the year was like a culture shock to me, even after having lived with the same society for 18 years. When we have things to compare and contrast with, they become less black and white, and nothing is absolutely good or bad, just relative to what your expectations are. There was also the lifestyle contrast, like the freedom of mobility and activity. I went home and wanted things to change for the better, for my family and for the progress of the country as a whole. At the time I think I was more keen on open minded attitudes, and was frustrated that this was not a common attribute of my society.

With growing older, I seem to have far less idealism. I can go back and forth between Melbourne and KL and adjust accordingly to the climate and lifestyles. I believe people should learn to adapt more to their surroundings, instead of lamenting about the way things are (although this is inevitable most of time) and make the most of it . These days I prefer to retain the flavour of my surroundings, to remind me of my origins. I know the importance of history to know why we are the way we are today, and how we ended up where we are. With a little more understanding, its easier to be less judgemental about the world, although sometimes you still try to nudge it in the ways you feel will be beneficial for the greater good.

I am like anybody out there, resistant to change if it brings an unforeseen future. Being reasonable about it brings logic into the equation, but when fear is governing your senses, logic takes little priority in decision making. Hence the need for an open mind, to consider all possibilities. I guess life, to a certain degree, is what you make of it.