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Everybody is Kung Fu Fightin’ (Update: Except My Son)
Update: Project “Donnie Yen” didn’t pan out for Xander. To be fair, Sinowushu is a very disciplined school; their Tanjong Katong training centre is also very fittingly set in an assembly hall in the midst of the former TKGS buildings. They regularly churn out national champions in the competitive sport, and their students thoroughly impressed my wife and I. However, the biggest problem Xander had was his age; discipline requires a lot of instruction, and we felt Xander wouldn’t be able to handle such an environment this early in his mental development. He also didn’t understand why everybody wasn’t smiling (though a few curious boys did come up close…
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What Society Wants (Updated)
You realised what was happening, and went up to hug her. You started crying as well, and in between breaths, you said to your mother, "Mummy, don't cry." confused and not knowing what else to say, your mother replied, "But you're not writing your words."
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What Your Parents Want
Over the weekend, the greatest accomplishment I have achieved with you was making you write the X in your name. Your mother is much better at this; her greatest accomplishment the same weekend was getting you to go to Settings and recognise the word General on an iPad. She’s still trying to figure out how to make you recognise Brightness and Wallpaper.
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Fear and Courage
Around bedtime… Me: Daddy will tell you a story. have you heard of the Three Little Pigs? Xan: No. Me: Okay, Once upon a time… One pig later… Me: … and the big bad wolf said, I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your… Xan: Daddy, I don’t want this story. I scared. Dear Xander, In the course of spending time with you, one thing I had not anticipated was how you would deal with fear. As a child, your father built up quite a resilience to things that go bump in the night. Thanks to the television viewing habits of some of my sisters, I was very much…
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The Best Defence
One night, just before falling asleep… Xander: Daddy, protect me. Me: Protect you? How? Xander: Like this (puts one arm around bolster) and like this (puts the other arm around bolster). … And he snuggled in and fell asleep in my arms. Dear Xander, It is only natural for your parents to worry for you, fuss over you, or nag at you for running/climbing/jumping/flying around all over the place. You’re never out of our sight when you’re with us, and we’re never out of yours. We want you to be safe, and protect you from harm as much as we can. At the same time, your mother and I also…
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Valentine’s Day
In view of your current experience (5 girls and counting over the last 2 years), your age (3 years and counting) and the number of aunties that want to marry their daughters off to you, I think it prudent to give you a couple of tips to get you on track.
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The 2nd Greatest Mystery of the Universe
The Y-factor is exactly what makes the co-existence of men and women so frustrating, yet it is also the one thing that makes the pursuit of women of such interest, if not excitement, of many men.
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Family Squabbles
You need to know that we never mean to argue in front of you; for that matter, we never mean to argue. I would also like to assure you that no matter what your mother and I are arguing about, it is not your fault. Your mother and I have very strong characters; it is a big part of why I married your mother in the first place, and it continues to be why I love her.
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The Economics of Chinese New Year
For the next 15-20 years, this will probably be your favourite holiday of the year; you get 2 days off school (or work) for the price of 1 holiday, the snacks and food are nothing short of a royal feast, you get to run from one place to another visiting everyone, and this time of year, people are giving out free money.
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You Are Your Father’s Son
Dear Xander, Based on feedback garnered from the readers of this blog (in other words, your mother), I shall keep my letters to you shorter and sharper. Your mother also has some opinion of your character development. Besides some of the other characteristics and behaviour you exhibit that take after me, she has noticed in recent months that both you and your father (me) seem to get into trouble with your mother at around the same time; she finds herself scolding you about something, and then scolding ME about 2 or 3 minutes later, for an unconnected yet related incident. For example: Your mother (to you): “XANDER TAY! Why did…