Post by Clement Yong

Growing up, my family did not have much money. Whenever we went to conveyor belt sushi restaurants, I would carefully pick only the $1 or $2 plates. The expensive red plates, the $7 ones, always felt completely out of reach. As a child, I genuinely thought: “One day, if I can take a red plate without even thinking twice about the price, that means I’ve made it in life.” Years passed. I became a lawyer. I hit my first million. I bought my dream car. But strangely, even then, I never felt comfortable taking the red plate. Not because I couldn’t afford it, but because I still could not justify spending money on something that did not feel like value for money. I did not feel 'rich' enough to take the red plate. Then my daughter came along. One day at a sushi restaurant, she pointed excitedly at a red plate she wanted. Without hesitation, I instinctively took it for her (before remembering toddlers shouldn’t be eating raw fish). And in that moment, something hit me. For the first time in my life, I truly felt rich. Not because of money. Not because of status. Not because of milestones. But because I have the privilege of loving someone so deeply, and being loved so purely in return. The joy she brings me every single day is something no amount of money can buy. It took me years to realise this, but that small moment in a sushi restaurant represented something much bigger: a childhood dream fulfilled in a way I never expected. Happy Mother’s Day to all the amazing mothers out there, and to everyone who has discovered that the richest parts of life often cannot be measured financially.