At the grand finale of National Day Parade last Friday, we saw Singapore mountaineer Khoo Swee Chiow climbing up a 14m inflatable pyramid structure to plant a Singapore flag. Just as in real life, obstacles suddenly appear, this structure appeared in the midst of the NDP Programme among the dancers on the field. Nicknamed EVEREST, it symbolised the challenges we face as a nation, and our determination to conquer the odds. And planting the flag was a call to Singaporeans to join in this spirit of adventure to scale new heights.
Embarking on your own adventure
This Friday, 19 of you will embark on your own adventure. For 25 days, you will trek more than 2000km in Tibet, carrying loads of up to 30kg each, braving cold temperatures and enduring the discomforts of high attitudes. 2000 kilometres! If we walk one kilometre a day in our daily activities, we will take more than five years to cover 2000km! All of you are not professional trekkers. You are our union members and you have trained hard for the past 18 months. You have made personal sacrifices to be part of this expedition. You have decided to make community work an integral part of your expedition - refurbishing school facilities, distributing educational material and giving out winter blankets. I admire your grit, determination and purpose.
Some may ask: Why is the NTUC supporting and encouraging such expeditions? We do so because they are meaningful pursuits in shaping the human spirit. Through them, we will learn to triumph over our own limits and work together to overcome the seemingly insurmountable obstacles. For some, it will be a test of their leadership ability. At the end of the day, such activities will create strong camaraderie and bonds.
As a labour movement, we want our workers and union members to have strength, determination and resilience. We want them to forge strong bonds with their co-workers, families, communities and all Singaporeans. These will help them overcome the challenges ahead. As the economy restructures, the transition may be painful for some. They may lose their jobs, or have to work at a lower salary in an entirely different area of work. If our workers are strong and resilient, the transition will be less painful.
Singaporeans' expectations have exceeded those of developed countries
Some weeks back, I shared a personal observation with my colleagues in NTUC. I said that perhaps the expectations of some Singaporeans have exceeded those of developed countries. Why did I say so? When Singaporeans travel for holidays, they want to stay in comfortable hotels. When people in developed countries take holidays, some go back to nature. Accommodation may be without the modern sanitary fittings we are used to.
Today, having arrived in housing is when we have bought the private property, such as a condominium unit with swimming pool. But the middle class in cities in developed countries live in unfenced blocks of apartments, with no swimming pool.
Today, having arrived also means having a maid to do the household chores. In developed countries, people do these chores themselves. Somehow they manage, but some of us say that we cannot cope without a maid!
For the 19 of you on the expedition, you have chosen to take the path less trodden. You will not have comfortable accommodation in your trek. You will be far away from the comforts of your home, and there is definitely no one to help you with domestic chores. You could have spent your time and money going for holidays, but you have decided to be part of the team. For your sacrifices and decision, I know that you will be richly rewarded.
The spirit and strength of Shackleton
As I thought about what to say to you in my speech, Shackleton's adventure came immediately to my mind. What about Shackleton's adventure? It is an 88-year-old story of courage and endurance, but even as I think about it today, the story remains so engaging, captivating and relevant.
Who was Shackleton? He was an explorer who led a crew of 27 men to attempt the first crossing on foot of the Antarctic Continent exactly 88 years ago, in August 1914. But even before his team could land on the continent, their ship was trapped and slowly crushed by packed ice. They were cut off from the world and stuck in a hostile and inhospitable environment. They were rescued some twenty months later. Miraculously, all survived. Their compelling story was one of overcoming adversity under extreme odds.
The story began with an advertisement that appeared in London newspapers in 1914:
Men wanted for Hazardous journey. Small wages, bitter cold, long months of complete darkness, constant danger, safe return doubtful. Honour and recognition in case of success.
Thousands responded! There was no lack of adventurous men. From the thousands who applied to join him in that hazardous journey, he subsequently put together a team of men with a range of temperament, personalities and skills, and diverse in social class, ranging from fishermen to university professors. The oldest in the team was a 57-year-old carpenter.
88 years ago, at the end of August 1914, the men sailed on the Endurance for Grytviken, a whaling station in South Georgia. The weather reports were disturbing, but on December 5, 1914, taking on extra clothing, with a great deal of apprehension, they set sailed.
On January 19, 1915 - forty-five days after their departure from South Georgia - disaster struck. The ice of the Weddell Sea closed around the Endurance like a vise. The expedition was stuck, sixty miles from Antartica Continent. And so began a test of endurance, courage, and leadership.
Day 327 of the expedition - October 27, 1915 - marked the end of Endurance. The masts toppled and sides were stove in, as shards of ice ripped the strong timbers to shreds.
After their ship was crushed, all the men had were three lifeboats. They packed as much as essential provisions as they could rescue, and had to give up their personal belongings. Leading by example, Shackleton threw away a gold watch and his Bible, to demonstrate that he too was willing to make personal sacrifices. But he tore a page of the Bible to show his men that he would continue to keep his faith.
Food was mainly seals and penguins. After 15 months, on April 9, 1915 - Day 491 - when the ice melted, they were able to launch their lifeboats. The temperature was so cold that when the waves broke over the boats, the water froze to the rowers' clothes in an instant. The men bailed furiously, but the water rose quickly to their ankles and then to their knees. One of them wearing leather boots soon lost all feeling in his feet!
The first night they camped on a flat heavy ice floe and fell asleep. Late that evening, "some intangible feeling of uneasiness" moved Shackleton to leave his tent. He stood in the quiet camp, watching the stars and snow flurries. Suddenly, the floe split under his feet, and from the darkness he could hear muffled, gasping sounds. Shackleton ran to a collapsed tent and threw it out of the way, exposing a member of the crew who was struggling in his sleeping bag in the frigid water below. With a tremendous heave, Shackleton pulled him onto the ice, just as the two halves of the broken floe came back together with a crash!
On Day 497 they made it a barren island called Elephant Island. The island must have been a sorrowful place - cold, rocky, uninhabited. Food was scarce. Had they made it to safety? No, because the chance of rescue was remote as they were completely cut off from the world.
There was only one chance of survival - some of them had to sail 800 miles in a lifeboat across the ocean to the nearest habitation to seek help, and that was the whaling station in South Georgia Island. That's about the distance between Singapore and Bangkok. Imagine this, sailing in a battered 7m boat across the roughest sea in the world, with just a sexton and compass! The skies were perpetually grey and their chances of clear skies, where they needed to plot their position, were slim. But accuracy for the journey was critical. If they were off with their calculations even by the slightest amount, it could translate into an error of many miles. And that would have made them miss South Georgia and heading out into open ocean. They would certainly have perished, so too the men they left behind in Elephant Island.
Shackleton led the five strongest sailors to make the voyage. They sailed for 17 days in hurricane winds and enormous waves to reached South Georgia. They made it, and that voyage is considered one of the greatest navigational feats in nautical history today.
But reaching South Georgia was not the end of their journey. They landed on the wrong side of the island! Between them and the whaling station stood mountains and glaciers, and they had no mountain climbing equipment. Shackleton led the two best able men and they set out on foot. He wrote this in his memoirs: "Over on Elephant Island 22 men were waiting for our relief that we alone could secure for them. Their plight was worse than ours. We must push on somehow." They marched without rest for three days and made it to the whaling station.
A rescue plan was quickly put together. But the ice and rough seas around Elephant Island thwarted several rescue attempts. It took another three months before the men were finally rescued on August 1916. It was two years after they set out for their expedition, but all made it back safely.
The story of Shackleton's failed expedition many years ago was not just an engaging tale of adventure, it was much more. What are the lessons? The lessons on teamwork, leadership, resilience, strength, endurance, perseverance and overcoming adversity are obvious, and as relevant today as they were 88 years ago. There was nothing to gain from the dangerous expedition, other than the promise of honour and fame. Indeed, the expedition failed to achieve its objective, but the story of their survival against all odds inspired a nation, and indeed continues to inspire the world.
All of you should know Sir Edmund Hillary. He was one of the first two men to climb Everest. Do you know what he said about Shackleton? "When disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton." That was the high regard that Hillary had of Shackleton. I hope you would too.
I have shared this story with you for one reason. In your long trek in Nepal, there are bound to be times where you feel more exhausted and tired than you have ever felt before. At those times, you must summon all the strength you can and push on. If remembering my short account of Shackleton's experience helps you muster that extra ounce of energy and take that one more step, I think I would have achieved my purpose.
Share your adventure and insights
The expedition in Nepal will be an adventure of a lifetime. You will be away from the daily routine of work. You will have time to reflect and think about issues. Yes, you will certainly think of you families and loved ones. Perhaps you too can find some time to ponder over issues such as remaking Singapore. Are Singaporeans' expectations too high? Have we lost the hunger and become too soft? Khoo Swee Chiow had climbed Everest - what is the Everest that Singapore has to climb? How can we foster the strength and spirit of Shackleton among Singaporeans?
I wish you all the best as you embark on your expedition this Friday. I have shared my thoughts on Shackleton with you. Please come back and share your adventure and insights with us. May the spirit and strength of Shackleton be with you in your journey.
