For the past year, we have always been wrestling with the idea of whether we should go home. It all started from the time when my parents were here for 2 weeks after I delivered Sheri. After they left, Daddy told me that he could see the radiance from my smile when I was chatting happily with my parents at the dinning table. At that moment, he felt very remorseful for robbing me the joy of being with my parents. However, we have been putting off this idea of going home because the pull factors are very compelling.
Unlike the scorching hot weather all year round back in our country, the four seasons here really makes life more interesting as there are different activities for us to engage in during each season. We also love the tranquility of a suburban lifestyle here, and if we ever want to experience the hustle and bustle of a city, we can always drive to major cities like New York and Philidephia, which are just a few hours of drive from here. Furthermore, living in a house with a yard is more achievable for common folks here as it is not reserved exclusively for the rich unlike in our own country. Herce, kids have more open space to roam and are closer to the nature, which we believe is beneficial to their development in their growing years. More importantly, these two years of working in a multinational company have been very fruitful for daddy. He has several pending patents and trade secrets. With what he has achieved, we believe that he is well-positioned for career advancement in the next few years.
In the light of these compelling pull factors, we could have easily settled down here for good. However, life is not that simple after all. There are other factors that we have to consider besides ourselves. Daddy has been away from home for almost eight years. His mother misses him and being parents ourselves now, we can understand how she feels. Furthermore, after working in the industry for two years, daddy feels that his real passion still lies in doing fundamental research in an academic institutions. Hence, the best way for us to be close to our family and at the same time, fulfil his scientific aspirations is to return home as an academic. Hence, daddy has decided to take up a research position in UC Berkeley in the interim to reestablish his acdemic credentials.
This is not an easy decision for daddy, but mommy respects his decision and fully supports what he wants to do. Life is short and we only live life once. It is important to do what we really want to do in life rather than face with the prospect of having a sense of regret in the future. Moreover, being passionate in what he loves and being filial to his parents are just the two qualities that mommy sees in him when I gave him my hand three years ago.
Life takes us through many turns and avenues, but this place will always have a special place in our hearts. This is the place where we had our first bundle of joy and we had so much fun seeing her growing up in the first two years of her life. Hopefully, we will be able to visit this place again with Sheri in the future, a place which holds so much fond memories for all of us.
Unlike the scorching hot weather all year round back in our country, the four seasons here really makes life more interesting as there are different activities for us to engage in during each season. We also love the tranquility of a suburban lifestyle here, and if we ever want to experience the hustle and bustle of a city, we can always drive to major cities like New York and Philidephia, which are just a few hours of drive from here. Furthermore, living in a house with a yard is more achievable for common folks here as it is not reserved exclusively for the rich unlike in our own country. Herce, kids have more open space to roam and are closer to the nature, which we believe is beneficial to their development in their growing years. More importantly, these two years of working in a multinational company have been very fruitful for daddy. He has several pending patents and trade secrets. With what he has achieved, we believe that he is well-positioned for career advancement in the next few years.
In the light of these compelling pull factors, we could have easily settled down here for good. However, life is not that simple after all. There are other factors that we have to consider besides ourselves. Daddy has been away from home for almost eight years. His mother misses him and being parents ourselves now, we can understand how she feels. Furthermore, after working in the industry for two years, daddy feels that his real passion still lies in doing fundamental research in an academic institutions. Hence, the best way for us to be close to our family and at the same time, fulfil his scientific aspirations is to return home as an academic. Hence, daddy has decided to take up a research position in UC Berkeley in the interim to reestablish his acdemic credentials.
This is not an easy decision for daddy, but mommy respects his decision and fully supports what he wants to do. Life is short and we only live life once. It is important to do what we really want to do in life rather than face with the prospect of having a sense of regret in the future. Moreover, being passionate in what he loves and being filial to his parents are just the two qualities that mommy sees in him when I gave him my hand three years ago.
Life takes us through many turns and avenues, but this place will always have a special place in our hearts. This is the place where we had our first bundle of joy and we had so much fun seeing her growing up in the first two years of her life. Hopefully, we will be able to visit this place again with Sheri in the future, a place which holds so much fond memories for all of us.
2 comments:
I am happy ML is doing well in his career and has found his interest and is now ready to pursue it with such a well thought plan.
Let me know if it really comes true for all of you to move to Berkeley. I still have some close friends and my auntie's family staying in the bay area.
I guess eventually Sheri will have to come back to Singapore. We all look forward to hanging around with her :D
Thanks, Oranna. We have just arrived in Berkeley on last Wednesday. We are still waiting for the movers to deliver our stuff so that we can set up the home. In the meantime, we are exploring the place. Will keep you updated on the blog. Cheers!
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