To Gail on her 25th birthday

10 years ago, if you'd ask me whether I would be working in Finance, I'd probably laugh it off with a "nah..." I didn't have a good impression of that industry. I had been checking the stock market since 6th grade, but banking and finance was another matter. Now when I look back, I think I read/watched all that stuff to just sound smart.

Back then, at age 14 going on 15, I was this angsty thing. Thoughtful, pensive, anxious, insecure, angry. And how 10 years have just flown by, and I'm no more a school girl afraid that war would hit, and that I would be left stranded without the chance of going into university (a weird fear that plagued me until I got into university).

10 years back, I watched those smartly dressed suited up corporates in shows like Ally McBeal, Spin City (remember pre-Alzemier's Michael J Fox) and marvel at how sleekly gorgeous corporate life seemed. All coffee mugs, designer furniture, pretty clothes, and corporate confidence and suave.

Richard Fish could sulk and whine in his office, but at least he looked good doing it.

Five years back, if you'd ask me again whether I'd be in the finance industry, I would be a bit more insistent that it was not a path for me. I wouldn't be so sure what I'd wanted to do, but I wouldn't have considered banking and finance.

And fast forward five years. As I sit in the office having several past 11pm nights, wondering why since my internship, I've had to work so late. I sometimes wonder...Lord are you preparing me for something? As I left work on Friday night at 4.15am, the cool breeze all around and I remember just how near the central business district was to the sea, marvelling at the stillness of the city in the wee hours of the morning.

A police car stops by the convenience store and two officers get out. I press on ahead towards Temasek Towers in the hope of getting a cab.

The year had just flown by. 2010 was among my most difficult of years and I know the Lord will make up for it.

And so I have finally made the transition: from school girl, to corporate lady with two degrees in between. It's been a ride, and for those who helped me along the journey. Thank you.