... our country

.... at the strike of the clock at 12 midnight last night on top of a hillock in Putrajaya Internationl COnvention Center (PICC) at Putrajaya, the new administrative center of Malaysia; "Merdeka!".... "Merdeka"... boomed repeteadly on huge speakers across the entire city. (Merdeka translated into "Independence").

31st August 2007 is Malaysia's 50th birthday, it is a day that reminds us that finally Malaysians are allowed to decide their own destinies, for better or for worse. 50yrs is not a short time and I believe Malaysia has gone a long way, there is a lot still to be done but isn't there always things to do in life?

What really surprises me is that when the speakers announced, "Raise for the national anthem!" immediately after that and "Negaraku" (My Nation) started to play; everyone... on the streets... on the PICC balconies, people that have been sitting down waiting for the fireworks display from since 7pm or so, rose... all of them. Everyone... such a sight to behold.

They rose and they sang the national anthem with gutso... even the small group of Chinese college students behind me, sang their hearts out... there is hope for the nation yet, I think. Once, I always thought of the singing national anthem being only things kids did during our weekly assemblies at primary and secondary schools.. but these are teenagers who has just "gotten rid" of their school "shackles"; they actually did sang... and so did thousands others and there was a thunderous applause afterwards.

It was a good feeling, yes... similar to the feeling every year I get for shooting the Wesak (a celebration of the birth of Buddha) day procession at Sentul, Kuala Lumpur.

Yes, globalisation is here... nation's borders are being blurred and eroded; but at the same time, the Internet age... globalisation has bought everything to our own doorsteps, there is no longer need to drive to Singapore just so that we can get discount electrical goods nor is there need to take a bus to Hadtyai of Thailand to buy cheap goods.

Happy birthday, Malaysia!