New art site

It's been almost three months since I accidentally launched headlong into art, and it's turned out to be a meaningful venture for me. So I decided to create a new blog for the purpose of chronicling my art journey, and also as a platform for me to sell my artworks to benefit migrant workers, the poor and the marginalised.

I'm no professional artist with no art training, so please don't expect super high standards! I'm improving with each drawing though, and I'm doing this because I believe in the cause and feel blessed to be able to contribute in this manner.

If you feel led or like the idea of buying art to support charitable causes, please do head over to my new blog, the Art Pandemic, to have a look. There, you can read the posts on how I progressed, as well as the background behind how this project came about and the artworks for sale.

Thank you and do support if you can!

Raising funds for charity through art

My Spain art project received a lot of positive responses among friends on FB. As much as that was fun and gratifying, I felt that to continue just amassing drawings was a little self-indulgent. Not that drawing for yourself is wrong, but I had this urge to do something more with it, if I could.

During this pandemic, people have stepped up. Some serve on the frontline, some volunteer their services, others give blood, etc. I’ve done none of these. All I’ve done is donate to charities but that felt inadequate. Then I had this idea: what if I were to sell my art for charity? That would raise more funds than what I can give as an individual.

So over the past month, I put up 5 lots of drawings for sale, each with a minimum donation sum.  All proceeds went to one of 4 charities, of the buyer's choice:
1) TWC2
2) HealthServe
3) Willing Hearts
4) YWAM

In all, I drew 31 pictures, sold 22 and raised almost $2,600 for charity.

The outcome was way more than I expected. When I first came up with the idea to do this, I was filled with self-doubt. Was I being overly ambitious? How many pictures would I be able to draw in a month? What if they’re crap? What if nobody buys? Or worse, what if people buy only out of pity??
But as I prayed about it, I realised the questions were all wrong because they were focused on me. Surely if I want to help the poor and the marginalised, the focus should be on them. I believe that if the heart is right, God will make all things possible.

So I told God, “Ok, I’ll draw whatever I feel led to, with no targets, no strings attached. You bring the buyers. Let each of the drawings speak to someone special.”

And so I drew. Every day, I would surf the internet looking for photos that inspired me or got me excited about drawing. It sounds odd but my feelings changed daily. Sometimes, I see a nice photo and set it aside, only to feel cold about it the next day. I don’t know why. Many of the drawings were experimental – the Eiffel Tower came about because I was curious if I could pull off the architectural lines and proportions. I played around with different types of paper, style and subjects (animals are hard, gosh).

31 pictures in under a month sounds like a frenetic pace even to me. I can be a tad obsessive (ok a lot) but honestly, it wasn’t like I rushed to churn out as many drawings as possible for the sake of sales. I looked forward to drawing every day, so I just did. And because I only drew what I felt like, it was FUN. Some drawings turned out more successful than others, but you know the strange thing? Some of the drawings I liked didn’t sell, while others that I didn’t think would sell, did. A few buyers told me a specific drawing called out to them which I thought was pretty amazing.

In the beginning, the hardest part about this project was not the work, but parting with the drawings. Especially since I don’t think I can ever replicate some of the drawings, so I did feel a pang letting go of them. I asked God, “Remove my attachment to the drawings and let my heart for the needy be bigger.” And remarkably, he did. Now when I finish a drawing that I think turned out well, I no longer feel the urge to keep it for myself. I’m honestly happy to give it away. (Well, except for one which I loved so much I actually did another so I could keep the original.)

It’s such a cliché to say it’s more blessed to give than to receive, but I really did feel happy every time I sold a drawing and donated to a charity. And the payoff that I hadn’t counted on was that my skills improved. I was most aware of this when redoing a picture I did 2 months ago – I’m more confident about what works and what doesn’t, and shading, which I used to struggle with, comes much more intuitively now.

I'm posting this to record and share the project with blog readers, even though I know hardly anyone comes here now is 😆 Here are some of the drawings I sold:

Waiter! Waiter!

When Andre finished his 'O' levels last year, we knew he was in for a long holiday, since the poly academic year only begins in late April. One of the things he's been doing during his free time is volunteering at a nearby community centre, giving tuition to needy kids.

Once, he arrived there only to find that the week's sessions had been cancelled and the coordinator had forgotten to inform him. Some of the kids must not have known too because about 6 kids turned up. Instead of telling them to go home, Andre took the keys from the cc office, opened up the room and helped all 6 kids with their homework. Sometimes, this boy really surprises me.

However, since this tuition gig is only once a week, Andre has been enjoying himself, lounging around and basically doing whatever he wants (which is often nothing). By January, I got tired of seeing him either playing on his phone or watching TV, to the point that I was sure his brain was going to rot to nothing.

So I bugged him to find a job. He resisted at first, protesting that he deserved a break, but reluctantly caved after a bit (I can be very persistent, doncha know it). Taking the easiest way out, he walked to a row of restaurants situated right behind our home, found one with a 'Help Wanted' sign, talked to the manager, and ta-dah! Got a job as a waiter.

Even though I know he got the job primarily to get me off his case (I know this as a fact because right after getting the job, he told me, "Ok, I've a job! Can you stop bugging me now??"), I couldn't be more pleased. It gave him something useful to do and some hands on experience while earning some pocket money. 

The restaurant turned out to be a great environment for him. He learned some useful skills, such as packing food for takeaways, and serving customers. Having done this job, he's now very sympathetic to waiters. When we eat out and sometimes a waiter gets our order wrong or forgets something, he would insist that we not make a fuss. "It's very difficult to remember everything, ok!" he would say.

The funny thing is the chef only speaks Mandarin and I'm sure you all know by now how brilliant Andre's Chinese standard is. The first few days, instead of telling the chef "兩份湯" (2 portions of soup), Andre would yell, "兩分湯!" (2 cents of soup). Luckily, the chef finds this terribly amusing so he would just laugh and nod his head.

As a bonus, the staff seem to like him and are very patient in guiding him. The chef, knowing that Andre loves fried chicken wings, sometimes fries a few extras just for him to take home!

On his part, he ended up enjoying working more he thought he would. It makes him feel useful and it gave his confidence a boost when he realised he could do a good job. See? Mummy does know best 😁

Upon receiving his first pay check, Andre surprised us with a couple of slices of cake from a nearby bakery.  Pretty sweet and I'm not talking about the cake  😉

The spirit of giving

One of the most thoughtful Christmas gifts we received this year was a gift card from our kids for Alternative Gifts International. How this works is that instead of getting a traditional present, the giver gives you a gift card for whatever amount he or she chooses, which you can then "redeem" by choosing to give that amount to a charity of your choice.

In a society where we often get far more stuff than we could ever use or need, getting a donation in your name is definitely more meaningful than say, getting yet another pair of socks. This organisation is pretty good - it pledges that at least 90% of your gift will go to the beneficiary and there are many beneficiaries to choose from, depending on what cause you prefer to support.

Since we're big believers of education (duh) and we prefer to first support countries closer to home, we chose to help kids in Myanmar stay in school.

I imagine that organisations like this one tend to see the bulk of giving at the year-end season, what with the Christmas celebrations and all. But what about the other times of the year?

One of my regular clients is SingHealth located at the SGH campus. When I go for meetings, I usually use the overhead bridge outside Outram MRT where an elderly blind man patiently stands or sits on a little stool, selling packets of tissue and sweets. I always make it a point to give him a few dollars and take a packet of tissue or a tube of Mentos.

The strange thing is that over the past few years, I've gotten so used to seeing him there that I have subconsciously, come to look out for him. On the rare occasion he's not there, I get a niggling worry at the back of my head that something has happened to him and I hope he's alright. Then when I see him again the next time like a faithful sentinel, I feel happy, like the world is right again.     

It's irrational, I know. What I give him is an insignificant token and he doesn't know me, nor me him. Yet I've come to think of him fondly as the SingHealth uncle and it feels like I've adopted him somehow.

If I may attempt to explain my feelings, I think it's because for most of us, charity is a faceless group of people or an organisation. Even though many Singaporeans complain that not enough is being done for the less fortunate, whether it's for the elderly, handicapped, special needs kids, I find it disturbing that often, we expect either the government or others to look after this lot. Worse than inaction, some folks even wash their hands of the entire issue, as shown in the HDB dwellers who protested over having the old folks home built near their flats. Not my problem, not in my back yard.

When we put a face to charity, however, as in the case of my SingHealth uncle, we can't help but have a different perspective. When we realise that the needy is an actual person who could be our grandma, our uncle, our neighbour, it becomes very difficult to simply walk on by. Giving is no longer a chore or a duty, it is something we feel compelled to do. I can say, in all honesty, when I give to my SingHealth uncle, I'm more blessed by him than vice versa.

As we do our New Year resolutions and reflect on how good God has been to us throughout the year, may we not have to find a reason or a season for giving. I hope you will open your hearts to people in need and give generously - whether in cash, kind or service.  And may you be richly blessed.

A very happy 2013 to everyone.

Boy in Ho Chi Minh city

Every year, some P6s at Andre's school are selected to go on a 4-day trip to Ho Chi Minh city after the PSLE. Andre was fortunate to be one of the few boys chosen from his class and he was over the moon.

Although the trip is for CIP purposes (the kids have to come up with a project to teach English to Vietnamese kids at a local primary school), most of the students treat it like a holiday. "We stay in a 5-star hotel and fly Singapore Airlines!" Andre gushed. He's quite clear about his priorities.

He was even appointed group leader for the CIP project although it turned out to be quite a farce as his group mates were 3 girls (after his best friend pulled out due to injury) and as is common knowledge, the sole boy in a girl group always gets bullied. He complained that the girls bossed him around and kept telling him what to do, which was secretly fine by me as he's clueless. If it were left up to him, the project would never get done.

We were a little apprehensive as this was the first time Andre would be travelling on his own. However, we also recognised that it was a great opportunity for him to learn a little independence.  So off he went!

Vietnam is probably a good place for Andre to visit education-wise as he has an interest in war and military strategies. He also knows a little about the Vietnam War from watching Forrest Gump. The highlight of the trip for him was undoubtedly the Củ Chi tunnels.  These 121-km tunnels were used by Viet Cong guerrillas as hiding spots, communications and supply routes during the Vietnam War and essentially helped the Viet Cong succeed in their resistance to American forces.

Here's the guide demonstrating one of the holes used for ambush. It's tiny.

Covered with leaves, it's undetectable.

 

Here's the entrance to a tunnel that the kids walked through. 

 

This rock is actually a hiding spot, the holes are for ventilation.

  

The students were also shown the types of traps used. Seems like they were all designed to inflict the maximum amount of pain. Shudder.

The students also visited the War Remnants Museum...

... and the Reunification Palace. Home and command center of General Nguyen Van Thieu who came into power in 1963, the Reunification Palace was the site of a dramatic finish to the Vietnam War as tanks crashed through the main gate on 30 April 1975.

Apart from the historical sites, Andre also visited a rice paddy field...


... and a lacquerware  factory.

I'd told Andre to take photos of street scenes and anything he deemed interesting.  So like a good boy, he acquiesced. Ho Chi Minh really is motorbike city.

Andre didn't take a single photo of the hotel and the food but he said both were superb. I didn't think it was possible but he came back looking rounder than ever! I think the tour organiser probably knew parents would worry about their kids not having enough food and fed them to the point of excess. Each meal was either a buffet or featured multiple courses.

Some of his schoolmates returned with conical Vietnamese hats and various local souvenirs. In contrast, Andre brought home a bright red Adidas cap (which he bargained for US$4 at the Ben Tanh Market), a rock from the hotel and a rice stalk. We had hysterics when he whipped out a plastic bag containing mini toiletries from the hotel. It's an inside joke cos we're always teasing Kenneth for this very Singaporean habit.

Andre had a ton of fun and he told me he's most pleased about being able to look after himself. Indeed, he was sensible and organised throughout the trip, and there was nothing missing when he came home. His teacher smsed us later that he was a joy to have around.

Aww... my little boy is all grown up.

Let's talk character education

A few weeks ago, the Minister for Education announced a new Edusave Character Award scheme where students who demonstrate good character will be given cash rewards.

I know this post is tardy, many people have already openly voiced their views on this. I've been procrastinating, maybe because even though I'm disappointed, to say the least, I wasn't terribly surprised by the news. (Hey look, two prepositions side by side. I'm sure it's grammatically wrong but I'm too lazy to look up the right form).

In other words, the move is so in character with MOE policies that I couldn't even muster up enough indignation to write an immediate response. So why am I writing one now? Well, last week, a friend of mine and I met up with a graduate student from the LKY School of Policy Studies who's organising a dialogue on character education in schools, and the discussion that followed was interesting enough to nudge me out of my lethargy.

So here are my (belated) views on character education. I've added sub-headers cos it's a long post.

A reward system undermines character building

Primarily, why I'm against cash rewards for displays of good character is this: values are about doing something that's intrinsically good, done for its own sake. If you do it for a reward, it automatically negates the value of that deed. It's the difference between a social worker who volunteers at a nursing home and the nursing home employee.

Child psychologists warn against giving rewards for something that the child should do anyway. For example, if you always reward a child for his eating vegetables, he'll be conditioned to think that eating vegetables is an undesirable thing and he deserves something in return for doing it.

That's exactly what is happening here. By offering a reward system, we're teaching our children that doing the right thing entitles them to a payoff. Take away the reward and there's no more motivation to be compassionate, tell the truth or stand up for others.

Ironically, by offering rewards for character, we are weakening, not strengthening the message that character is important.

In an attempt to be fair, I looked up MOE's response to the issue. This was part of their official statement:

"The Edusave Character Award will recognise a small number of students in each school who are exemplary in character, and who can inspire others as role models. For instance, these may be students who have shown resilience and have done well despite their difficult circumstances."

See, I understand that MOE's intention is good. But I can already predict how this will play out. Because the scheme depends entirely on the teachers to identify the good kids and the acts of good behaviour, in the end, the rewards will go to the usual suspects - the prefects, the popular kids, the teachers' pets (usually the ones who do well academically).

I'm not saying that all these kids are necessarily brown-nosers, some of them are truly good souls. What I'm saying is that these kids have already been given ample recognition in their schools. They don't need further motivation. The ones whom we've missed all along - the rowdy boy who patiently cares for his ailing grandmother or the mousy girl in the corner who helps her friends without advertising to all and sundry - these are the kids who will continue to be overlooked.

Basically, we're not enlarging the pool of kids who will be recognised, we're just rewarding the same pool of kids more. As my friend Lilian said, at this rate, some of those prefects would have amassed enough cash to go to Europe by the time they graduate from p6.

Limitations of CCE lessons

Instead of an award, what I think we need is an overhaul of the Civics and Moral Education (CME) classes (now renamed Character & Citizenship Education or CCE). Right now, these lessons are a joke. In the first place, these periods are usually usurped for examinable subjects. Every year, I can count on my kids bringing home their CME textbooks and workbooks clean and untouched.

Even in the odd instance where there is a CCE lesson, the kids find it incredibly boring. First, for some strange reason, the lessons are taught in Mother Tongue. And we are all familiar with the very moralistic Chinese stories. Listening to the teacher drone on about filial piety or patriotism will hardly inspire you to be a model of good behaviour.

I think what MOE needs to realise is that character education cannot be confined to one period in a week, it has to be a pervasive part of the school culture. Otherwise, it's as effective as the self-proclaimed Christian who goes to church every Sunday and then acts in an ungodly manner for the rest of the week.

Added note: Lesley-Anne just informed me that for her CCE class, she has to write essays in Chinese based on values taught in the class. And her conduct grade is partially based on how well she writes the essay! Doesn't the school find this odd?

There are simply limitations to learning character from a lesson in the classroom. Most kids already know what is good behaviour, the challenge is translating the knowledge into action. The only effective way to build character is to experience, to share, to do.

For example, Lilian's sons attend an international school overseas. The school regularly organises community service trips to places like Operation Smile and Habitat for Humanity where the kids help out in a very direct way. These trips are not free (in fact, they're quite costly) and you have to apply for them, not everyone who applies will be successful. The message is that helping others in need is not just part and parcel of life, it's a privilege.

Compare this with our system where kids expect to get CCA points for community service and now, cash rewards. What kind of characters are we hoping to develop?

Moving character education out of the classroom

I have two suggestions for character education in schools:

1) Instead of the textbook lessons on CCE, make them hands-on, community service sessions. Each school, level or class can work with a specific organisation (can be welfare, social or environmental) for this. Eg. if the class adopts an orphanage, every week (or once in two weeks), the kids would visit the orphanage to help out for an hour or so.

It's a win-win situation - charity organisations prefer regular volunteers to those who just show up every Christmas or CNY. The volunteers form bonds with the residents and there's continuity in whatever project is being carried out. For the kids, the benefits are tremendous. The sense of fulfilment and gratification in being able to directly help somebody cannot be overstated.

Research shows that kids who perform community service tasks from young have a much higher tendency to continue them into adulthood. Imagine the impact of every school-going child performing a hands-on community service task every week - to the recipients, to society and to the kids themselves.

2) Schools these days organise myriads of overseas trips for students. But I notice that all of them are for the sake of experience and learning, again me, me, me. Why can't we also include in the offering, community service trips like the ones I mentioned above?

If we say character education is important, we need to back this up in our school programmes. They can't be compulsory of course, but they would send the message - go overseas and make a difference in someone's life.

Sure, some parents may feel why must we spend money for our kids to give back but this is precisely the mindset we want to change.

Some people may say character is not just about community service. Of course not. But I feel that in Singapore's context, compassion, empathy and kindness are what's most urgently needed. The other character traits like diligence and resilience are too closely affiliated to achievement for my liking - we already emphasise too much of them. Want to build diligence? Why, just do a few more assessment books.

Singapore has always said we want to create a gracious society. We need to put our money where our mouth is. It takes all - parents, schools, society. As it is, I'm appalled some parents have complained that the 6-hour minimum requirement for community service for secondary school students is too much. We need to reverse this me-mentality. It's a slippery slope and I'm afraid we've already started on the slide downwards.

"Character is the result of two things: mental attitude and the way we spend our time." - Elbert Green Hubbard

Balik kampung

This is a post on the last CIP session Lesley-Anne did in the December holidays. This was organised by Ground-Up Initiative, a small volunteer group that aims to educate the public on ecological issues and promote sustainable living.

Their main project is setting up Sustainable Urban Farms (SURF) at Bottle Tree Park in Yishun to revive the kampung spirit and way of living in this little community.

It's very charming. There's an area showcasing traditional methods of farming,

a greenhouse where many varieties of plants are grown,

and a large covered area where they farm vegetables (not sure what type, though).

Every weekend, the volunteers engage in an activity they call "balik kampung", ie clearing rows of stepped terraces and planting different herbs, flowers and so on. Even companies get in the act, all in the name of raising environmental consciousness.









That's what Lesley-Anne did that one Sunday morning. She did mostly weeding though and it was a different but eye-opening experience for this urbanite. Even though she was given gloves, the thorns were something fierce. No picture of her at work but here's what the other volunteers were doing that day.

It's hard work but rewarding. I thought it was an excellent change from the usual stuff and hey, no better way to save the earth than to tend to it!

Selling flags for SPCA

I didn't manage to finish blogging about Lesley-Anne's CIP during the holidays so here's one in the New Year!

Animal welfare is one of the causes that Lesley-Anne is a huge advocate of so without hesitation, she signed up for SPCA's flag day in December, along with two of her friends.

Volunteers were encouraged to dress up in the animal theme or even bring their pets. Since it was close to Christmas, there was a very festive air about the whole event, which was great.

Dog on the right is not ours, by the way, another volunteer standing in line brought it.

The girls parked themselves at an MRT station to take advantage of the high human traffic and got to work.

I was quite surprised to discover that by the end of the four-hour shift, the cans were almost full. Maybe people are more open with their wallets during the year-end season but it's nice to see the giving spirit among Singaporeans.

Job well done!