I had a restful weekend, coupled with a few on-calls. Overall, though, thank you to everyone who made it such a wonderful one—celebrating birthdays, catching up over life, and spending time with my favourite people
I’ve always been an ah gong and ah ma girl. My grandmother and I shared a very special relationship, and she showered me with unconditional love. Perhaps that’s why I had such a lovely time chatting with Uncle J on a sleepy Sunday afternoon, sipping our favourite green tea umeshu (which is absolutely a bomb and a must-try—thanks, JJ).
A few takeaways from my afternoon yum-cha session with Uncle J:
1. Buy good companies and hold them forever.
Choose a good company, make sure it’s one with strong demand and volume in the market, buy it, and then hold it forever.
He passed this investing philosophy on to his daughter, and it seems to have worked very well for both of them. 🙂
Reflection:
I enjoy the cheap thrill of taking profits. It rewards both me and my ego. There’s something satisfying about patting myself on the back and saying, “Good job. I made the right decision buying this stock.”
Nonetheless, there’s an old saying: knowing when to buy requires discipline, but knowing when to sell requires a sifu.
As I scroll through my stock holdings every day, I remind myself that patience should be my best friend. Rebalance the portfolio quarterly or annually, not emotionally.
Funnily enough, Angel texted me today saying that she had helped boost LVMH’s revenue by purchasing a piece of Louis Vuitton clothing—something neither of us can fully appreciate. 😀
Ladies, please go ahead and get your Cartier, VCA, and Hermès. I’ll focus on buying their stocks instead, okay?
2. Marriage is about give and take.
I smiled as I watched Uncle and Aunty holding hands while walking back to their car.
Reflection:
Andrew once told me that I shouldn’t call it “compromising” because the word carries a slightly negative connotation. Instead, he suggested calling it “moulding.”
I’ve always regarded marriage as a rather risky decision.
Haven’t we seen enough divorces? Wife-beaters? (Or perhaps, in Malaysia, husband-beaters too.) And don’t even get me started on those who end up contracting STIs from their spouses.
Human beings are inherently flawed. Two people with completely different upbringings coming together and building a life together is no small feat.
I’m not denying that happy marriages exist. Uncle and Aunty are an example. My parents are too—most of the time.
But when I calculate the risk-reward ratio, I sometimes find myself thinking: hmm, the numbers don’t look particularly favourable.
So while I would very much like to make my mother happy and not completely derail all her prayers, perhaps we should all just continue praying. 😀
No one is perfect, of course.
I just happen to enjoy complaining.
*I still don’t get his nose. 😀
Doctor on FIRE 