Bye, Inuka...
It was with a heavy heart when we went to see Inuka for the last time. The bear had been in poor health, and the zoo was contemplating if it should be put to sleep.
The news stirred up controversy whether we should let the bear die a natural death or we should put it out of its pain...Lots of people came to see him two days before the day he was scheduled to go for his check-up. Many cards lined the glass enclosure.
He seemed hale and was able to lumber, albeit heavily with a gait, from the outdoor deck to the indoor den.
He did seem sleepy, but otherwise, he seemed to be doing fine.
At the point of writing this, the zoo had made a decision not to revive it from anesthesia on humane grounds... I wondered why his impending death tugged at the strings of so many Singaporeans while the death of the white tiger which happened a few years ago did not seem to have caused such an outcry. Could it be because it sort of symbolised our little State, in that he was the first ever polar bear to be born in the tropics and we managed to artificially create this wonderful cold climate enclosure for him, a story which was like how Singapore beat all odds and rose from rags to riches, overcoming natural constraints and we built all sorts of artificial environments to enhance our standard of living?
Maybe it was because it was so exotic to have a polar bear. Maybe it was a feeling of nostalgia, that this bear accompanied our growing up years, and there were fewer and fewer tangible reminders of the past as the years went by and new developments mercilessly erased the old landscape.
Perhaps it was because we visited the zoo so often as Tong was an animal lover and we had grown affectionate towards this bear, who loved to bask in the sun even though he was a polar bear? Whatever it was, we muttered bye and prayed that we would meet in heaven once again.
As a tribute to Inuka, I amended the storyline in Tong's book, "Isaac's Wild Animal Puns" to pay a tribute to this special bear. The illustrations are under way, I could not wait for the final product.
Legoland
Papa was going to start work in Singtel soon, so we took the opportunity to go to LEGOLAND before he was sucked into the torrents of work.
Nothing beat visiting our favourite theme park on a sunny day, with very few visitors to boot, so we took all the rides we wanted, even multiple times.
Would you believe it? Little Jun could control the car really well! What good motor skills.
Labour Day
It seemed like we spent Labour Day with our cousins last year too. We had wanted to have a picnic at the beach but a heavy rain ruined the plans.
We detoured to Sports Hub instead and scootered under the shelter initially. The sky cleared up and the kids went to play at the water play area.
They sure had a whale of a time.
Memory Lane
A younger Xun xun
And younger Mama and her sisters
Tong was maturing really nicely. He learnt how to cook eggs using the microwave so he could prepare his breakfast and even mine and washed up after that. What a sweetheart.
They always asked for a photo when they took the bus and snuggled on the seat.
What a cutie pie. Loved kissing those soft lips and smelling his sweet breath.
Arise Excursion - Goat Farm
Ha, the farm had that distinctive smell of warm animal bodies and poop...
Sera's mummy bought a pack of hay and off they went to feed the lambs
It was a nice little adventure. I was so exhausted after the outing, it was like I had done a lot for the day but still had to go for work. We tried the milk and it was surprisingly yummy. I thought it would have a funny taste but it was actually lighter and not as sweet as cow's milk. At Tong's request, I bought a few bottles so he could relish them at home : )
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