It’s the first weekend of 2022 and the news across the world is not very encouraging. The Omicron variant has been sweeping across the world with almost 3 million new cases reported on a single day on Friday! A new third wave has been infecting across India and this could not come at a worse time for me. I am planning to fly out to India in the next few weeks and things are moving fast. I could technically cancel my trip, but then this would mean my parents will be left to fend for themselves. I can’t in good conscience do that and so I am hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. I am triple vaccinated and will wear multiple masks throughout the trip and stay at home as much as possible.

The next few weeks are going to be full of trepidation as I plan this trip. I am filled with so many mixed emotions, I don’t know know what my real emotions are. On one hand, I am super excited to finally be able to meet my parents after more than 2 years, but given India’s third wave, this trip is also a scary one. Ah well, I am going to leave it all in the hands of the higher power and just hope and pray I manage to successfully come back home to Singapore.

Our family also suffered a loss this week when our beloved grandmother, my maternal grandmother suddenly passed away. She was in the hospital with a fractured shin when she was found to be positive with COVID-19. But the sad part was that she passed away just hours after being operated upon and discharged from the hospital. Unfortunately, most of us could not make it to the funeral, but I am happy she passed away in the arms of two of her daughters. She was almost 92 and one of the most healthy and active persons I have ever seen. If I am even half as healthy as she was by the time I am 60 or 70, I will consider myself very fortunate.

Our quote for today comes to us from Paul Ian Guillermo, which tells us to smile. If we are happy, smile with all our heart and let it spread and when we are sad or down, make sure that we smile, so the sadness can disapparate. As you read this, smile and keep smiling for the rest of the day, wherever you are.

Happy New Year! May this year give wings to your dreams and you watch them come true!

This is the last week of the holidays before school starts on Monday and so GG & BB are trying to get as much as they can with friends. Holidays are over and it’s back to work and school from Monday.

Last week S turned 50 and we had a small intimate celebration at home for him over the weekend. It was just family mainly because of the safe distancing protocals where we can only have five other guests in the house. So we only invited S’ mum, aunt and sister and her family. It’s was a very nice night of talk and laughter and the menu was inspired by Mumbai’s street foods.

I have also booked my tickets for my flight to India and I am so excited. But there is also a tinge of fear about the increasing surge of COVID-19 cases because of the Omicron variant. But I am going to go with a positive mindset and take as many precautions as possible so that I come back unscathed.

Today’s positive quote is from the Indian author, activist and motivational speaker, Shiv Khera, best known for his book, You Can Win. Khera says that positive action combined with positive thoughts lead to success. So that’s a good quote to think about at the beginning of the year and use that as our guiding principle for the year which is what I am going to do.

Take care, stay safe and have a wonderful 2022!

Merry Christmas everyone! Though I am a day late, the sentiment is the same. May the true spirit of Christmas shine in your heart and light your path.

This week was the same as last week because the children are still on holiday and so nothing really to talk about. They are going out with friends, especially catching up with those who they haven’t seen in a while and those whom they will not see for a while during this holiday.

On the work front, because almost everyone is in the holiday mood, things are pretty quiet and this means I get more time to write, though I am also in a holiday mood and there are days when I have to force myself to both write and walk.

Singapore is still reporting COVID-19 cases, especially the Omicron variant, most of which seem to come from imported cases which mean travellers entering Singapore. But the Omicron variant is still a cause of concern. Today this variant accounts for 73% of US infections, up from just about 3% last week according to the US CDC. Experts say that a double dose of the vaccine coupled with the booster jab is the key along with safe distancing, masking and having good hygiene habits to combat the variant. Israel is even starting a second booster jab for seniors above 60 as a deterrent against the Omicron variant. According to experts, this variant will become the dominant variant in 2022 as it is a much more transmissible variant. And unless everyone in the world has been double vaccinated and has had the booster jab, more variants are expected until the virus becomes endemic. So it’s quite likely our new normal will continue to be masking outdoors, having regular booster jabs and maintaining hygiene practices, especially in high-risk settings like hospitals, during travel or if new variants emerge where vaccine protection is significantly reduced.

Today’s positivity quote is courtesy of American author, Joyce Meyer who tells us one cannot have a positive life with a negative mindset. So if one has a negative mindset, one keeps thinking negative thoughts and life as being difficult, then life will not be as pleasant as one wishes. Our happiness is within us with the biggest factor of our happiness ourselves. So when one is happy internally and has positive thoughts, it reflects in the way we think, believe and act and this, in turn, reflects in our lives which automatically becomes more enriched.

That’s all from us this week. Take care, stay safe and have a wonderful last week of 2021!

We’re just a couple of weeks to the new year, but Omicron is what is dominating headlines.
Omicron across the world today. A new study now says that Omicron is more likely to reinfect than Delta with the risk of reinfection with the Omicron variant more than five times higher and so far, it has shown no sign of being milder than the Delta variant. Depending on the estimates used for vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic infection from the Delta variant, this translates into vaccine effectiveness of between 0 per cent and 20 per cent after two doses, and between 55 per cent and 80 per cent after a booster dose. According to the World Health Organisation, WHO, Omicron has been detected in 77 countries and more countries probably already have it, but it has not yet been detected. Because the variant is spreading so fast, the sheer number of cases could overwhelm health systems. As of yesterday, Singapore has reported 24 confirmed cases, of which only three are locals and 21 are imported cases.

The children are done with their exams and are on their Christmas holidays. They are quite busy catching up with friends, especially BB whose best friend will be enlisting in early January. They have tons of activities planned for the next two weeks, which is good for their social life.

Today’s quote is an exercise in daily affirmation which comes to us courtesy of Ralph Waldo Emerson. All it tells us to do is tell ourselves every day that every day is the best day of our lives. Simple right? But it is hard to do, as I can attest to, but we need to persevere and we will eventually get there.

So in the light of the recent COVID developments, please stay safe, and make sure you are masked and please get vaccinated and if you are eligible for the booster shot, go ahead and get it. It will protect you to a large extent from the virus.

It’s just a couple of weeks till the end of the year. I think we are all waiting to see if 2022 is better than the last two years.

After posting last week’s update I realised I had not updated my walking stats. So I am in the last province of Myanmar before I hit India’s borders. I will most likely not hit the borders by the end of the year but will do so in early January.

This past week has been all about doctor visits for us. GG had an ultrasound which showed up as completely normal, so all her issues are because of her thyroid. So we are still on medication and hope by the next review, she will have better results.

I also had to get a tooth extracted this week because it was quite decayed. I have always prided on having excellent teeth and having the dentist tell me that it is very decayed and even a root canal may not save it was very hard. It took me a while to digest the fact before I could sign the waivers for the extraction.

Today’s quote comes to us from Rhonda Byrne, an Australian television writer and producer, whose best selling book, The Secret and then the film based on the book is based on the law of attraction. She tells us to turn every situation in life into a positive one. This is akin to saying the glass is half full instead of half empty where we look at the positive aspect of a situation and perceive life through an optimistic lens instead of being pessimistic.

And after flipping and flopping, as of this morning, travellers from Singapore need not spend time in a home quarantine when they go to India. So this is really good news for all those wanting to visit family. I am seriously considering making a short trip to Mumbai early next year, and hope and pray that things stay the same, or become better and not take a turn for the worse.

And with that, stay safe, stay masked and get vaccinated!