What does it mean to be Singaporean?

We celebrated the nation's 43rd birthday a few days ago much to the hype and sensation of fireworks and songs, music and dances. Singaporeans of all walks of life, the entrepreneurs to the housewives, the elderly to the youths, the locals to the foreigners immerse themselves in a night of colourful shows and sensational performances. The atmosphere in the stadium was electric. We were all proud and happy to celebrate our nation's 43rd year of independence. As all the glitter and fun ends with a spectacular fireworks shows that light up the night skies, we all returned back home, feeling exhausted and tired from the long queues at the MRT stations and buses and the long traffic jams on the roads leading away from the stadium.

The next morning we woke up to the sunshine of a brand new day. The experience of yesterday's event still fresh in our memories. As we open up the Sunday's morning news, we read the post articles of yesterday's event, the full colour print and photos that immortalise the day forever.

Two days later, as we are all back to work, bogged down by our daily routines and commitments, the event of August 8 fades away from our mind.

So what is the significants of the National Day to us then? Is it another day for us to break from the norms and spent the day with the family and friends. To some, they may say that it is a day for us to remember the struggle for independence and the ardous journey of nation building. But that sounds cliche.

I am sure that in the thoughts of many people of my generation, the significant of National Day bears the same standing as any other major public holidays. It is just another day where we could all enjoy an unceremonious break from the office, from the mundane routine of daily life. I met with a few of my friends the day after the National event and no one recounted their experience of either watching the event in the television, the event was never discussed at all as if it has never happened at all.

So what does it mean to be a Singaporean if we all lost all the affliation to the meaning. The national day event is just a catalysts, and outlet of national patriotism however affliation to the country should go beyond a national day event. The meaning of being a Singaporean is being proud to be one. It is the unexplainable feeling one has whenever the National Anthem is being played and the flag being flown by. It is the sense of pride that one has whenever we are overseas and the desire to announce to anyone we met that we are from Singapore.

Many would argue that the meaning of being a Singaporean is more to that but for me suffice to begin that we are proud of the achievements that we have attained thus far from our humble beginning to being a cosmopolitan city.