I Never Liked Malaysia Very Much Until I Looked At It In The Eye.

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I live in a country called Malaysia. I never liked my country very much.

For years, I struggled with identifying with my country. I turned away from the Malay language, even more so my own mother tongue of Mandarin.

I will cringe when I have to tell my friends who are from all over the world that I am from Malaysia. Some of them don’t even know where Malaysia is. The easiest way for me to help them have even a sense of recollection of Malaysia, is by reference to Thailand, or Singapore. I will say, “Oh, we are in the middle of Thailand and Singapore.” And recently, the easiest point of reference is MH370 incident.

I never liked my Chinese culture, let alone the Malaysian culture.

I don’t like being associated with it.

For years, I felt alone in my own home country. In fact, I always look forward to the day I can leave the country. For good.

Even after years of growing up amongst the soil of this land, I never felt connected with it.

I felt isolated, alone.

Until one day, I was finally able to look at Malaysia in the eye.

I realised that for me to grow into a balanced, complete individual, it is essential and important for me to connect with my roots, to acknowledge and reconnect with the land I grew up in.

Malaysia, is Malaysia. It is a land, a country, a nation, and within this homeland of mine, lies all the wonderful culture which within itself has nothing to do with the politics, the governors, and how the country has been run.

I never liked Malaysia very much until I was able to look at Malaysia in the eye.

I never liked Malaysia very much until I was able to see every Malaysian walking the streets, as a human being.

I never liked Malaysia very much until I realised every Malaysian, is what makes Malaysia, Malaysia.

Now, I love my country. I love the wonderful old traditions. I love Melaka and its old heritage. I love the paddy hills in the North of Malaysia, Kedah, Alor Star, where my father was born. I appreciate the South of Malaysia where I was born, where I grew up in Johor Bahru and its little towns. I love the Malay culture and I especially adore Indian food, and of course, I deeply respect and honor my Chinese heritage.

Malaysia is my country. For some reason, I am born here. For some reason, I am a Malaysian and not any other citizen of the world.

For today, I am fine with it. In fact, I am more than fine with it. I am happy to be Malaysian. I am grateful to be Malaysian. We might not be the most developed country in the world and it might not be the easiest place to live in compared to other developed countries,- however, this country with all that it is allowed its citizens to live as they are. It has provided enough for me to allow me to get to where I am today.

Look, it will always never be enough. Things can always be better. There will always be problems and dissatisfying issues with whoever who runs the country. But, let’s not forget that while we all have a right to choose our governors, and so we should of course, but that we Malaysians don’t forget to see each other as human beings, and as Malaysians.

Let’s not forget that most of us come from wanting a better society, a better Malaysia.

Let’s walk down the streets of Malaysia after tonight, and remember that while we might all come from different races, cultures, and ethnicity, different income levels, different age, right down to different genders, right now, in this time, what makes you and me, you and them, one and the same, is that we all come from the same homeland.

And what we can change, individually as Malaysians, is to start relating and connecting ourselves to each other, to see each other as human beings. To really care, genuinely. To remember that while you are driving on the roads of Malaysia, that the other person in the car is also a human being, a fellow Malaysian who very well wants the same thing as you do.

Let’s not forget all this after tonight. Let’s all remember to extend kindness and courtesy to our fellow citizens and neighbours, not only today, but for days to come. For all time.

We are not one man for himself. Change is progressive. If we want change on a national level, we must spark change right down to an individual level.

What can we do after tomorrow, irregardless of the outcome, and start change by ourselves?

What can we do to be the change we wish to see?

Even if you can’t create huge changes at the top, what changes can you make on a very minimal level?

Can we take on board more values of honesty, integrity, and real, genuine care?

Can we try living that on a daily basis, instead of only once in a blue moon, when an election happens?

What else can we do? What else you do?

Change starts from you. Be the change you wish to see.

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