Truth be told, it's been a long time since I'm still up at this time (signs of aging), and I really ain't in some emo mood or something. It seems that as I age and mature, Mr Emo has slowly left me alone and has since been replaced by Mr Pensive.

Ahh so what sparked off this post then? As always, I can never point to a single event because things don't just happen like that; more often than not, things get accumulated somewhere somehow and it leashes out when the time comes. The trigger for today was this quote - death is the only certainty in life. One day we will all die - whether or not you are Chinese, Malay, Indian, Christian, Muslim, Atheist, Buddhist. And this is one universal fact almost no one disputes.

Having established that we all will die one day, that helps us put things in perspective. There are always hypotheticals that make us think - how will you spend your day if you know you would die in 24 hours' time? What would you say to your loved ones if you could only see them one last time? Sometimes, such questions may appear to be frivolous and even meaningless because it wouldn't really happen. Yet, life is unpredictable that way.

If I had only 24 more hours left to live, would I spend my time reading through Principles of Singapore Land Law?

If I knew I was going to die the next day, would I spend my time typing this blog entry?

I would very much like to call up a friend now (yes, even at this unearthly hour) for a quick chat before arranging to meet for breakfast, spend lunch with my family to tell them that I love them, spend the afternoon meeting up more friends over a nice cup of coffee/tea, catch the sunset and spend dinner with my beloved, walk around and chat. Basically anything to let the people around me know that I love them sincerely. And with that goal/purpose in mind, I'll work towards it and bear that at the back of my mind always - everything else is irrelevant.

I think the key point of such an 'exercise' is not that we just want to spend the time mulling over random issues. The question is, am I going to wait until I really have only 24 more hours in life before I do all those I want to do?

It takes 1 small prick and a few drops of blood, and one can be tested negative or positive for HIV.

It takes 2 words for one to be joined to another in a civil union and to spend the rest of their lives together.

It takes 3 words for 2 people to start a relationship.

Yet most of the time, the focus is not so much about these small acts itself - it's the larger connotations behind them.

You cannot tell what sort of a lifestyle a person has, but him going for a HIV test gives insight.

You cannot be sure that the most quarrelsome couple you have ever known will survive being together, but them getting married suggests that they might work things out.

You cannot agree that the two people should be together, but them reaffirming each other connotes something more.

And so we come to the idea - that the thing itself is not so much the crux, but the overarching thoughts associated with that simple action or those simple words - sometimes we mean it, other times it's bringing out our point.

it's about remembering the best and walking away from the temptation.

Marriage is not about never socialising with your friends again,

it's about remembering your commitment to somebody to be there at the end of the day.

Marriage is not about never being disappointed again,

it's about remembering that the person comes as a whole package.

Marriage is not about never having arguments and fights again,

it's about remembering that the person is worth it.