Saluting Under The Flag

I chanced upon this article by a former sea scout recently and thought it apt for today's occasion (well, he did write it for Merdeka 2 years or so ago). Gives a lot of meaning and context to the stuff we usually regard as mundane and stupid. Here's a snippet of the article.

I was salutiong under the flag
by seymores | August 31, 2005

[...] My tenure as ASM saw me going through many bittersweet experiences. Some are memorable and some are just plain boring. During camps, we would do many stupid things and as an ASM I get to made junior scouts do even more stupid things. However there are things you wish the young ones would know, that certain silly things are too important to ignore.

As a scout and as a leader, we raised and saluted to the national flag in the morning and pull the flag down before sunset. A very elaborate ceremony to respect the flag if you ask me. But what I failed to see as a young scout then I came to realized later when I became a leader.

When I salute to the national flag I saw the past leaders saluting the same way. I looked at my juniors and I was aware that sometimes ago some young men took on the leadership role to guide the young scouts, to manage the scouting activities, to have sacrificed and labored for the passion of scouting. They have done all that with a genuine heart and with honors. I felt privileged to be given the chance to contribute to something bigger than one individual.

When I salute the flag, I salute to all the past, the present, the future leaders, and the followers; for their contributions, their spirit and cause for the greater good. I respect them for the fact that they understood we are all brothers under the sun.

When I salute the flag, I salute to the men and women who did something more for everyone.

When I was saluting under the flag, I was standing on the shoulder of giants before me. [...]

Our nation celebrates 50 years of independence today. Here's wishing all Malaysians a Happy Merdeka.