Across The Waters

You mentioned that you’re a mum! What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt from your family?
I’ve learnt to truly understand the values of togetherness and sacrifice.

Back in 2016, my husband had a near-death experience, so needless to say, it was a very challenging and emotionally draining period for the family. However, I had to remain strong for the sake of my children, who were only 10 and six years old at the time.

As a family, we tried our best to stay positive for my husband, and constantly reminded him that we were all rooting for him, and that we were all hoping that he would recover well so that we could be properly reunited as a family and go on more adventures together.

Thankfully, we pulled through this experience, and because of this, my family bonded and became a lot stronger. We’re all happy and healthy now, and we have come to understand the importance of togetherness and unity, especially when it comes to tackling obstacles thrown our way.

Now, my 16-year-old daughter is preparing for her O Levels. She is definitely very driven, and has her priorities straight, which is to attain excellent results. She also strives to be the best in all she does on top of her studies, such as with her multiple leadership positions and school CCA.

To juggle all these, she has had to sacrifice a lot of personal time hanging out with her friends and, at times, family as well. She sacrifices time spent on Netflix, rest, and so much more, and is willing to make all these sacrifices just so she can make my husband and I proud. This is something I also aspire to do—to make sacrifices and push myself to work harder for the sake of my family that I love.

What about with friends? What are three traits that you value most in a friend?
1. Loyalty. With a loyal friend, I can be reassured that this friend is going to be by my side no matter what, so this value makes me more willing to go out of my way to make this person happy.

2. Empathy. To me, having someone empathetic by your side is one of the main reasons why we need friends—so that I know I can always have someone to run to whenever I face challenges, and have my feelings validated.

3. Being a good listener. At times, after a long, tiring day, all I need is to vent at someone and have someone there to listen to me without interjecting me (laughs).

If you had unlimited resources, what’s something frivolous you’d collect?
I’d collect small toys and maybe create a room for them. I love looking at and admiring little trinkets. I wasn’t privileged enough to be able to collect toys growing up, because my family was not the wealthiest. That doesn’t mean I had a mundane childhood though. I didn’t collect any toys, but I did play with paper dolls and a couple of Barbie dolls I received as gifts from family friends, which was fun too!

Over the years, how has your fashion sense evolved?
I make sure I feel comfortable and confident wearing the clothes that I choose. I dress according to my age as I do not want to look too loud.

Most days, I’m in my work pants. I used to wear long dresses, but I chucked them aside as I feel that working in the CBD, you have to walk around a lot during lunch hour, so I’ve opted for comfort and practicality over dressing up.

Do you miss dressing the way you used to?
Not really. Like I mentioned, comfort and practicality is now at the top of my list when it comes to picking out clothes, and my current sense of dressing allows me to do so.

Back then, I would say I dressed more feminine and elaborately. Now, I tend to lean towards a more professional style due to the nature of my corporate job.