Blank Doll wonders aloud.

The National Day Parade is a joy to watch, whether one belongs to the thousands aseat at the heart of the festivities or more likely, one watches it from the air-conditioned comforts of home.

My step-brother was asking me if I found it boring since they showed the same things every year? Same parade, same party, same Mr. Lee Kuan Yew.

It was not always the same.

It is the year 1966. Singapore's first year of independence. What airplanes did we fly across the newly sovereign skies of Singapore? We who had been excised from the one union upon which our hopes of future prosperity had been pined on? What tanks did we roll across the soil of Singapore? We who were now to defend this island we call our home? What fireworks did we launch in jubilation? We who did not know whether the next decade would bring peace or penury?

So yes, it is indeed a spectacle today. It is a joy to see Singapore display for a single day, the confidence of a wealthy country. We are the people of a country who has come so very far within the span of one and forty years. What is the Singaporean identity, you ask? You only have to feel it, on this most special of day. You only have to remember that your forefathers came to this island with no wish to stay and here you are, not a member of China, nor India, nor even the Malay islands, but a member of a country prosperous and free.

We have survived. We have thrived. Today once more, we celebrate this miracle of a nation. F-16s fly in the sky. Cannons worth only God knows how much are fired. The rifleshots of joy are Uniquely Singapore.

And we have something to celebrate now, haven't we? We are the wealthiest country in South-East Asia, the third in Asia. We are the only city-state in the world. Crime does not plague us, neither do economic troubles. Our government is a paragon of efficiency and service. Our people born knowing that the next day brings more than the last, that with each breath we draw, the future becomes brighter.

The colours white and red have special significance in Singapore. Red not because of communism, but red because, I like to think, so much blood was spilt in the delivery of this nation. White because we are still pure, still young unburdened by history. White also because it has been the party of white that has led our nation to its glorious present. Whether they do lead us to an even greater age, I do not wish to debate today. The fact is, Singapore bears the imprint of the white party and more than that, of one man.

Mr. Lee Kuan Yew, the first prime minister of an independent Singapore, the father of modern Singapore. He is old now, but watching him survey his work every year at the National Day Parade makes me burst with pride. He approves, he is proud of his work.

I am proud of our country. I can only hope that the rest of you- those among you who are still young, who will come to put your imprint on our nation- will be proud too.

Happy Birthday, Singapore.

C'est tout.