Bukit Panjang Primary School will always be special for me. Both my parents were teachers in the school during the 1950s. In fact, that’s where they met and fell in love. So in a sense, I owe my existence to this school.

Even today, many people still come up to tell me that my parents taught them so many years ago.

So many diverse societies in East Asia, yet remarkably similar challenges confronting all of us.

I was very touched to be invited on this special occasion. The invitation filled in parts of my maternal family history and family tree that I had previously not discovered.

I now know that my family has been in Singapore for more than a century over at least 4 generations.

We need to do our bit as fathers for several reasons .. our children need us, our wives want us to do so, but perhaps most important, we do it for our own sakes. We're trying to encourage more fathers to get involved in schools, to be a part of an environment that imparts values, attitudes and perspectives of our children.  Remember, it's a one-way ticket, so don't miss this ride. … It is the best part of life!