Sunday, October 04, 2020

10 years in Canada - New Norm

Today marks my 10th year in Canada. Not much to add since my previous milestone post 5 years ago

In this year (2020) of the pandemic, people keep talking about adjusting to a "new norm". Migration is pretty much the same, moving from an old-norm to a new-norm. It does not mean that life will suddenly become a bed of roses after migration. In fact, over time immigrants will settle into a new norm -- a life that incorporates elements of their new country and some cultural influences from their previous country.

Sometimes people ask me if I miss Singapore. There are elements that I think about when prompted. E.g. when I see lots of yummy hawker food OR listen to Xin Yao (Singapore songs) shared by friends on Facebook. However, I would hesitate to use the word "miss".

  1. In this globally connected world, there are ways to connect if a friendship is meaningful enough to continue on.
  2. Some emigrants have deep family ties which make them miss Singapore. This is not my situation. My ties to my somewhat dysfunctional family is loose and is kept intentionally so (by me) for protective reasons. There are close siblings who stay in-touch, but for most part it is better and safer for all parties to live their own lives.
  3. Food is not a "raison d'etre" for me.
  4. I recognize the neurological advantages of growing up in a multilingual society, but I do not wish for my child to absorb the "meritocracy" and competitive norms of Singapore.
  5. I am not too much into "things". In any case, in this global economy, often things that one can get in Singapore, are also available in Canada. Note: The reverse is even more evident since Singapore is a well-known international trading hub.
Thus when people ask me now if I had "gone back" to Singapore since my arrival; I would invariably answer honestly that, "No, I have not VISITED Singapore since coming to Canada". Keyword here being "visited", since Singapore is no longer "home" and the Singapore that I used to call home only exists as a figment of my memory.

Invariably, the next question would be along the lines of "When do you plan to return? Soon?" And my honest answer as always, "No, I do not have any plans to visit." 
 
This is my new norm.