A man's legacy

The passing away of LKY has brought along with it many tributes about his contribution to Singapore and family.Not withstanding this of course there are also critics who did not like his style of governance and what he tried to do for his country.That aside , I have not seen or read about people who criticized him as a person , a loving husband , father and grandfather.His legacy to his family , to me , should also take prominence. To the Chinese , leaving this world is inevitable but leaving behind something which will last for generations is something else.the Chinese believe that every man worth his salt will leave behind the home which he built for the children.The house is usually built through the sheer effort of the man without any help most of the time. It is the symbol of his achievements and the need to provide a roof over the heads of his family.The house represents all the efforts of the man and is something which he proudly leaves for his children and grandchildren. Sad to say , sometimes the children feel that the house which the man built is not good enough so as soon as he is gone they tear it down and destroy the vary fabric of the home.In the case of LKY its fortunate neither one of the parents is around so they cant see what will happen to the house which they both built being torn apart.Can you imagine how one partner will feel if he is around to see the children tearing down the house.They say the soul of the man will always come back to his house but what happens when he does so and finds a totally different house.Where is the respect for him? , where is the sentiment which should be attached to the house ? and where is the consideration for the feelings of the remaining spouse? I am sure that LKY's family will want to ensure that the house which their parents built and spent so much happy time will not be touched and I am quite sure , out of love and respect for their parents they will retain as much of the things in the house as possible.This is what the Chinese call filial piety and holding dear all that was precious to their parents. Yes, LKY's legacy is the values and principles which he lived by and its a learning eye opener for us all.Respect, filial piety , consideration for the feelings of the elders are age old values which must not be lost.I feel that what we should learn from LKY is not so much about the way of governance but how to be a true man and how despite being so busy he was able to run his family and impart the values and principles which one should live by.