Angie told me 5 years old may be the last year before a child loses his or her innocence. "After 5 years old, talks like young adult, not cute anymore," she said.
I agree with Angie. Already, I've seen Albany chiding me with the tone of an adult for not doing things right or reminding me when I forget my tasks. She is gradually learning how to stand up for herself by verbal debates instead of resorting to whining and crying. It is clear her child-like innocence is clearly slipping from us day by day. That affirms my decision to give top priority to my family, at least at this stage when living moments with children are the the most precious.
"Wow! Donut cake!" exclaimed Albany at 6.30am in the morning when she saw the Chiffon Cake Judy baked the previous night.
"Shhh!" I interrupted her sternly. "Everyone is still asleep." Deep inside, I smiled at her childish enthusiasm. I remembered what Angie told me and will cherish the last slices of Albany's innocence as she grows to 6 day to day.
I wonder often if I have been a good parent and what I should be doing for her. The hardest thing I find being a parent is setting a good example. Imagine if I want to teach my child an important life skill. Say, handling rejections and mustering a positive mindset and reaction after every rejection. I couldn't even do it properly myself to save my ass, let alone qualify to be her mentor. Imagine, trying to expose her to entrepreneurship, where I struggle to do a simple sales deal myself. I believe grooming a better generation is not about throwing the money in for enrichment courses. It has a lot to do with setting a good example at home first. The benefits of external enrichment is limited to the correct mentality. We cannot preach good financial management if we do not demonstrate that to the children in our daily lives. The same goes for personal hygiene, civic mindedness, table mindedness, being considerate, being responsible, being trustworthy, being confident, having good customer service and so on.
A week later, we went down to town to meet up with a businessman with a unique preposition for Judy. I told Judy to keep her mind open and worry about the money involved later on. Our purpose was to find out if there was a way for Judy to get a working visa. All other things were secondary and would be examined in detail only after we have establish that her visa and route to PR is secure.
The ex-Singaporean businessman shook our hands one by one and asked for our names. All of us introduced ourselves informally by our first names. However when the businessman turned to Albany, she gave a response that raised my eyebrows.
"I'm Chin. Albany Chin," she said with a straight face and extended her hand for a handshake.
All of us laughed. We didn't see where that could be coming from. None of us had ever introduced ourselves in that manner in her presence, even in jest. Neither did she catch a James Bond movie before. It was an amusing moment but only to remind myself that my little daughter is growing up fast.
I must strive to improve myself for her sake. To set a better example to her. To put my. money where my mouth is
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