Tasty!!!

I went to watch the Dim Sum Dollies with a colleague a few weeks ago. For those of you who don't know what that is, surf by here: http://www.dimsumdollies.com/ to have a bite of them tasty morsels. It was a last minute decision - tickets were very limited - all the good seats, gone (much like good men) and the ones left, single (I wish this was the case with good men). I recall watching them when they first started out. It was in a small, intimate setting. Most of the audience were women. This production has grown from strength to strength and I'm proud to be able to see it develop at almost every step of the way.

We got there just on time and managed to inhale dinner - woohooo....It was a sold out night. There were even school kids there! They were probably about 14/15 years old - hard to miss them...they were in their school uniforms, chattering in that high pitched voices of theirs, no doubt, filled with excitement and expectations of their, most probably, first "adult" show. I was in 2 minds about their presence - not that I'm being a prude (and almost all of Singapore's productions are MILD) - but I didn't think that the content would be suitable for them. But then again with such widespread usage of the internet and the wild wow west, what is it that the kids not know these days? On the other hand because of the messages behind the hardy-har-har, it is good to create a social awareness in them...At this age, they are still impressionable; yet able to already form their own ideas about things. I hope they were able to identify the social issues within the skits....they can't be all that dim-witted???! Give me hope, give me hope....

I thoroughly enjoyed the show. It was a laugh-a-minute. They were taking big digs at most of the current issues. They even took a dig at MM Lee. Singapore sure has come a long way. If it was 10-15 years ago - no way is such a show possible. I think the only "on the edge" public show that was "approved" back then was the Boom Boom Room, with Kumar, the resident drag star throwing out wicked lines. Boom Boom Room is sadly non-existent but Kumar still does his act at Play (http://www.playclub.com.sg/) fortnightly on Wednesdays. The queen is back! Yay!

The one issue that did not get a mention was education. This playback process in my mind was triggered by a comment that a friend made, "8 years old and they can't even spell "playground" or "exciting"...something so simple and they can't construct a simple, proper sentence. Aiyah! These kids are hopeless - basket cases!" I was pretty annoyed at his comment. I retorted, "What do you expect when kids nowadays are stuck in front of the box all hours?" They don't read, parents are too caught up in their work, providing a comfortable life for these kids. The kids are stuck in front of a box to keep them entertained. Where is there interaction and learning anymore?

Life is not as simple as before where mothers have the luxury of staying at home and keeping an eye on the kids. Back then Singapore was trying to get on her feet and being very much dependent on human labour, education is one of the ways out. I remember the government encouraging all to read. They had mobile libraries and incentives at school for reading the most number of books. Kids are not rubbish to be discarded carelessly into some basket. These kids could also be with a learning disorder. Whereas it's not a disease, it does need to be looked into. Only now is the government realising that there are kids who can't learn the conventional way and are addressing the issue.

I take special offence to this because I was one of those kids. Though I excelled in the English language at school (I was a mobile libary kid), I was terrible at Math and Science. It was a struggle for me. Only now that I realise I learn very well hands-on and I manage it. I fail miserably when it comes to theory lessons. I guess I can't relate to actual situations with just theory. I would rather do it, fail and learn then to just learn something in theory, thinking I'm prepared but hah, this is life, who am I kidding?! But to each his own. Some learn theory and also do well when they are faced with a real situation. *shrug*

These kids are our future - it's not in our interest to discard them like used tissue paper into the basket. It is our job to unlock their potential and nurture them. Imagine if it was you in their position or if it was your kid that was talked about in that way. Not pretty is it?

Oh yes, and I know some of you who are reading this are not from Singapore - welcome, stay with me as I ramble on.

Petal P. Rose