Sopha Collection

darrylyeo1d

Whenever I visit my extended family members, I am always reminded – for all its best-in-class safety, surveillance, and public infrastructure capabilities – just how creatively stifling and ideologically monocultural Singapore can be, and the reasons many of them chose to live, study, and work in the West. One uncle exited to Canada so his son could avoid mandatory military training (National Service – NS). Another distant cousin recently graduated from college in Australia. Meanwhile her brother recently finished NS, and, though humbled by the experience, has no motivation left to pursue higher education. My own parents exited the Singapore education system in the 90s and fully bought into the American Dream – with all the financial and administrative ups and downs that entailed – and in particular sacrificed greatly to raise me and my brother with a Silicon Valley education. I am forever grateful to them.