The Scorecard for Great Leadership

Photography by AT Monaco

I was browsing the  World Economic Forum website when I came across this fascinating leadership scorecard contributed by Lutfey Siddiqi. As the upcoming US presidential election heats up, this scorecard might come in handy as we evaluate the candidates and our current president.

According to Professor Siddiqi,

The first attribute is personal integrity, incorruptibility and sacrifice.
The second is the ability to galvanize support through eloquence, story-telling and charisma.
Third – and arguably the most important factor – is effectiveness or the delivery of results through the length of a marathon, and beyond the sprint of revolutionary rhetoric.

Scoring them on a scale of 1 to 10 in each category, it would be eye-opening to see how our presidential candidates, including the current president, stack up. The first two attributes would be  relatively easier to score with all that is readily available about their personal lives, their past, as well as their speeches and interactions with voters on the campaign trail. The last would require more investigative work. There is plenty of "revolutionary rhetoric" going around from all our candidates, but rhetoric, even the impassioned ones, can hardly translate into effective governance. Experience then, with notable qualifying results, would be an obvious first criteria for evaluating a candidate in the third category.

While I believe that all three attributes are vital, the first to me is the most important, for a rotten tree simply cannot bear good fruit. A leader who lacks personal integrity, out of the corruptness of his heart, can only tear down a nation regardless of his eloquence or the effectiveness of his policies.

How wonderful it would be, come the next election, to elect leaders whose personal integrity, courage and sacrifice are exemplary; whose love for nation comes before personal hubris and gain; whose speeches and actions inspire and encourage, replacing tweets that deride and demoralize; and whose diplomatic, governing experience galvanizes, restores and sustains a nation that has somehow lost its footing since the last presidential election.

Scallion Biscuits

Photography by Lauren Monaco

Discovered this easy recipe for savory biscuits while sorting my old food magazines. I am no longer one to try elaborate recipes, easy recipes with few steps and healthy ingredients are now what capture my attention. Delighted that this scallion biscuit recipe from Bon Appeitite has made its way into my default recipe list! Taste great with soup, salad, or an omelette!

Here's the recipe with some changes. I made mine with less salt and smaller in size.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon sugar
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, cooled, divided
4 scallions, thinly sliced
1½ cups sour cream
Hungarian hot paprika (for serving)

PREPARATION

Preheat oven to 400°.
Whisk flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and baking soda in a large bowl.
Drizzle in 6 Tbsp. butter and mix lightly with your hands just to distribute butter.
Make a well in center of bowl and add scallions and sour cream.
Mix with a wooden spoon until no dry spots remain and mixture forms a shaggy dough.

Using 2 spoons, drop about 1/4 cup of dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet, spacing at least 1½" apart, or into a 12" cast-iron skillet, arranging so sides of biscuits are just touching.
Brush tops with remaining 2 Tbsp. butter; sprinkle with paprika.
Bake biscuits until tops and bottoms are golden brown on top and bottom, 12–15 minutes.

Father's Day 2019

Photography by AT Monaco

In memory of my father on this Father's Day, who lived cherishing the intangibles that give value to life:

love of family,
faithfulness to friends,
loyalty to country,
tenacity in the pursuit of learning,
generosity toward education and the arts,
compassion for the downtrodden,
and above all humility before God and man.

Here's the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra performing one of my father favorites, Nimrod from Elgar's Egnima Variations.

Exodus

A great rabbi of a couple of millenia ago once said, "...salvation is from the Jews." Can't agree more!

Because it is the Passover season, the Passover story in particular and the Exodus narrative in general have been much on my mind, The action-packed Exodus narrative of rescue and destruction has attracted interpretations through the ages, from a wide spectrum of worldviews, from Jewish to Christian to secular. Within its two interconnected themes of redemption and judgement, there are also myriad interpretations, some read with lenses of nationalism, some of progress, others of humanism, etc.

And for some, the Exodus narrative (with its climatic Passover event), cannot be fully understood without focusing on its main protagonist, YHWH. It was his act of supreme mercy towards the downtrodden and abhorrence  of oppression that the Israelites were rescued out of the severe bondage of Egyptian slavery. From there, a course is set for this particular people to be the bearer of God’s redemptive love to all peoples of all nations.

In reading any narrative, much can be gleaned from minor characters and subplots, but the overarching thrust of the story is lost when the protagonist is ignored or cut out altogether.

In our willingness to embrace the many different interpretations of the Exodus story, compelling and necessary as I have found some to be, I wonder how much richer these interpretations could be and what deeper meanings could be additionally gleaned if the protagonist were rightfully made central in this pivotal narrative of all times?

I encourage each of us to dive into this fascinating Exodus narrative during the Passover season, allowing YHWH to take and guide us through his out-of-this-world story!

21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father.
22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.
23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him.
24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
25 The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming (he who is called Christ). When he comes, he will tell us all things."
26 Jesus said to her, "I who speak to you am he." 

John 4:.21-26

Crash Rich Asians -- Delightful But Misleading

The movie "Crazy Rich Asians" is a delightful rom com. I would like to start by congratulating legendary star Michelle Yeoh and  newbie Henry Golding for their brilliant performances. Yeoh beautifully accomplished the difficult task of making the audience sympathetic to Eleanor's station in old money Singapore. Despite the uproar over casting Golding as Nick because of his biracial ethnicity, I think he's a perfect choice. I've a cousin who's Peranakan Chinese who looks rather like Nick. In the hawker-centre scene, Golding seamlessly pulled off ordering an array of delectable foods in different dialects and Malay, which would have been difficult for an American-Chinese actor to accomplish.

For a film that is set in Singapore, it however lacks a certain sensibility to what Singapore is all about. Beginning the movie with the Napoleon quote "Let China sleep, for when she wakes, she will wake the world" is disconcerting. What, I ask, does that have to do with Singapore or the storyline? The quote is immediately followed by the scene of the Young family buying up a London hotel. Aren't the Youngs Singaporeans and not Chinese from China?

While the majority of Singaporeans are of Chinese descent, those whose ancestors came from China generations ago have little affinity to China. Growing up on the cusp of Singapore's independence, I was taught that we're first of all Singaporeans, and our ties to our respective ethnicities secondary. The majority of us went to English stream schools, studying Mandarin as our second language. We prefer curry puffs to dumplings. Singaporean Chinese happily adopt Western and Malay cultures while still holding on to aspects of Chinese traditions, being unabashedly proud of that heritage. China is not our motherland, nor Chinese our mother tongue. We're taught from young that we may be hua ren but we are definitely not zhong guo ren!
     
I would also differ with Peik Lin's summation of the wealth in Singapore. It was not mostly brought over from China. The wealthy in Singapore made their fortunes by settling in a country with a stable, lawful governance to foster their expansive enterprises.

Additionally, I am baffled by the director's decision not to highlight Singapore's ethnic diversity. The Young family's circle of friends could have been more diverse. My family certainly have good friends and even family members from different ethnic groups. I would think that in Nick's generation, diversity would play an even bigger role. At the very least, they could have cast wealthy Malays, Indians, Eurasians and internationals at the grandmother's soirée and the wedding. What a missed opportunity to bring in even richer, equally gorgeous fashions, especially the sarong kebaya to the haute couture-packed festivities.

I end with a quote from the Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Hsien Loong, before his trip to China in April, 2018: "...Chinese tourists visit Singapore precisely because we are not another Chinese city. They find Singapore a fascinating multiracial and multi-religious country with different cultures and ways of life. Different ethnic groups and religious faiths co-exist side by side, harmoniously. We hope that when Chinese tourists visit us, they can see and appreciate how Singapore is unique, and how our multi-racial national identity influences our place in the world and relations with other countries."

Parapets!

Cemetery in Gloucester by Edward Hopper

When you build a new house, you shall make a parapet for your roof, that you may not bring the guilt of blood upon your house, if anyone should fall from it.

 Deuteronomy 22:8

I don't know about you, but I am tired of hearing our government officials say they are offering their prayers and support after each mass shooting! I am not going to doubt the sincerity of their prayers, but I think they should keep their prayers private and work on making parapets!  They have the power to bring about stricter gun legislation to protect the country. But instead, they utter overarching sentiments about their prayers and "forever" support, sermonize about evil and "hearts without God". We don't need our government to philosophize about the origin of evil or look into the hearts of men, or even pray for us, but to first of all govern and govern with integrity and not act like demagogues and pander to powerful lobbyists. We need them to make and enforce laws to keep us safe, lest we be harmed (killed) by their cowardly inaction or desperate hold to power.

For the guilt of blood are upon those who fail to make parapets!

Mother's Day 2018

My daughters flew in from Chicago and New York respectively to celebrate Mother's Day a couple of weekends early. Just as well, as it would have been too hot in Dallas this weekend to serve their lovingly curated feast in our library with every window opened to let in the delightful afternoon breeze. 

Every treat was homemade, from the Victoria sponge cake to the smoked salmon sandwiches. Along with the scrumptious scones and sandwiches, there were Singaporean delights like kueh dada and kueh lapis, served in the yellow enamel tiffin carrier that my mother handed down to me.

My mother would have enjoyed this elaborate afternoon tea and been tickled pink at the finesse of her granddaughters' lavish spread. She would have rated it high above our regular afternoon tea spots like the Tanglin Club and the Goodwood Hotel in Singapore!

I am grateful on this Mother's Day for my mother and my daughters, for their undying love, influence, guidance and care, and for the beauty and joy they bring into my life!

Happy Mother's Day!

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7