Bringing America to Singapore by Sharing Traditions

By Richard Hartung

Quintessential American traditions such as fireworks for the 4th of July, turkey and trimmings for Thanksgiving, and even cookies for Christmas, have been important for our family here in Singapore. We’ve tried to continue family customs regardless of location. As our children were growing up, we decided to go beyond just making these American traditions part of their upbringing and invited Singaporean or other non-American friends to join us for many of the celebrations and learn more about American customs. Even though the holiday celebrations were initially foreign concepts for our friends, they quickly embraced the American traditions.

The easiest in one sense was including friends in the 4th of July festivities at the US Navy base at Sembawang, and then at the Singapore American School. We simply needed to invite friends and have them show up. It worked - sometimes. One friend brought his fiancée and invited her parents as well, scarfed down plenty of the burgers and ribs as well as other American treats, enjoyed the fireworks and stayed longer than we did to listen to the music. Another friend was hesitant to bring her young daughter, worried she would be scared by the noise and fireworks. These and other friends who have joined us now look out for our invitation to the oft-changing date to celebrate American independence – July 4th - even in Singapore.

While Thanksgiving took more effort, it seemed to have an even greater impact. The meal was traditional and much the same every year: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, pumpkin pie and a bit more. The guests were different each year though as we invited various families of our children’s friends. Some years were more Singaporean. Other years, we invited British and Australian friends. Regardless, all became fans of both the food and the opportunity to become part of a family tradition that embraced the Thanksgiving spirit of generosity and caring. Friends stayed long into the evening on Thanksgiving Day, even though the next day was a workday in Singapore, and we had delightful discussions. After our children left for college, we pivoted and started inviting the same friends every year. After nearly a decade, we have stronger connections than ever with this small group, who have showed up time after time. They have become such big fans of Thanksgiving that we start getting inquiries if we haven’t sent our invitations a month or two in advance. Along with fully embracing American customs, the people who have joined us for Thanksgiving are among our closest friends.

While we spent Christmas Day in the US for many years, we could still bring cheer to our friends and neighbors during this season, too. Christmas cookies, from snickerdoodles to decorated cut-out cookies, have been a family tradition since I was a child. We enlisted our own children to decorate the cookies, then took them to neighbors at our condo and delivered some to friends. While Christmas cookies weren’t a tradition for many of them, they were delighted to receive the treats and we could share how giving gifts, however small, is important at this special time.

There are other holidays too, of course. We decided that explaining Labor Day in September or Memorial Day in May was too much of a challenge, so we skipped the barbecues. And Halloween as well as some other holidays have become part of the mainstream culture in Singapore.

While the impact may be relatively small in one sense, dozens of Singaporeans have now learned more about America through our invitations and some have even made the traditions part of their own lives. We have closer friends, many of whom look forward to the invitations to celebrations or small gifts. And especially at a time when relations between nations can be fraught, connecting on a small, personal level seems like it can make a big difference to help bridge differences, starting from the bottom up.