(This is reproduced from the posting I made on my Facebook Page on 10th December 2025.)

Some old photos can be good for our mind and our mood. This one was taken in Brisbane while my eldest daughter Adeline was studying accountancy and son Clifford was doing his law program, both at Queensland University of Technology (QUT). My youngest, Audrey, was in a Brisbane high school at that time, and later went on to complete her dentistry course at the University of Queensland (UQ).

I used to visit the family a couple of times a year. Each time, the kids reminded me how fast they were growing up. While they excelled at their studies, I was caught up in my work in the corporate world in Kuala Lumpur, as a newly appointed CEO of a public listed education group. The main shareholders were mostly passive, delegating the running of entire operations to me and my team.

I stayed on their payroll for about eight years before I saw an opening to take over their stake and become the controlling shareholder, with financing from a couple of supportive bankers. Back in those years, I had to work late into the night. There was no time to spend on personal passions, or think about work-life balances. But when we look at some of the old photos, we see not the visual appeal or share-ability, but how they anchor us in some of our life’s moments.

Despite the fact all family members weren’t physically together most of the time, the accomplishment seemed to have been a joint effort. For many of us who threw our everything into our work in our younger days and achieving what we set out to do, we will realize soon enough that family is the finishing line.