Inspired by the BBC programme, Letter from America by journalist Alistair Cooke, Professor Kua Ee Heok, Consultant Psychiatrist at the National University Hospital, embarked on a journey to pen down the experiences of elderly Singaporeans who survived World War II and shed light on how they viewed their place in society post-war.
He is uncertain about the future, but is certain that a deeper respect for the elderly today will surely mean a brighter tomorrow.
— A quote from the book reflecting the protagonist, Dr Weng’s feelings as he pondered about sharing the stories of the elderly he meets regularly during his weekly visits to the Woodlands Day Centre.
It took 12 years to write and is now used in Harvard University for a course on anthropology. Prof Kua’s novel, “Listening to Letter from America”, is based on the true stories of a group of elderly people who met regularly at a community day care in Woodlands where they shared their sacrifices in defending the country and recalled the horrors of the war years.
In this book of fiction, it is through this mutual sharing of rich experiences that the psychological healing and restoration of their self-esteem began. It is common for the elderly who live alone to slide into depression due to loneliness and a loss sense of social identity post-retirement. As in real life, it is heartening that these shared experiences allowed the elderly characters to find a common bond and form a sense of social connectedness and friendship, vital to having good mental health in old age, according to Prof Kua.
Prof Kua has always been motivated to share such invaluable stories. He pointed out, “These stories are about people with common experiences coming together, and about the moral courage and mental resilience of the elderly.” He hopes that this novel would encourage the younger ones to take a step back and reflect on how and why the elderly are frequently misunderstood and misrepresented.
Having written 22 books on psychiatry, stress, ageing and depression, Prof Kua is no stranger to writing. Notably, his book, “Speaking Up for Mental Illness”, which detailed Prof Kua’s research on mental illness in Singapore over the past 38 years, was recently awarded the REX Karmaveer Medal in the non-fiction category, as a book which champions positive change.