After spending many months in Europe and especially in Denmark, I’ve come to realise that people and quality relationships matter so much more to me than goods and material possessions.

In Singapore, we finally have blue skies and fresh air again, and TIME to spend with loved ones that most of us haven’t had since we were kids. TIME is so precious. It’s not every day that we have time to spend on the things and people that we love.

I’ve been in a long-distance relationship before and I know how it feels to always be counting down the seconds till time runs out — and trust me, you don’t want to wait till the last few seconds to do the things that matter the most.

How many of us have sacrificed friends, family and relationships for our careers? How many of us have postponed and cancelled on plans made beforehand because of work? How many of us have given up on any semblance of a social life in order to climb the corporate ladder and make more money?

We’ve always been taught that TIME=MONEY and I’m not denying that’s true. But how many of us think more about what we spend our money on than what we spend our time on?

If money is the currency we use to feed our stomachs, then time is the currency we use to feed our hearts and our souls.

We’re not giving ourselves permission to be human if we’re always sacrificing one for the other.

This is a quote by my favourite author, Haruki Murakami: “Spend your money on the things money can buy. Spend your time on the things money can't buy.” I never want to wake up one day and regret that I let time slip right through my fingers.

Let’s take this time to refresh, renew and rejuvenate ourselves and our relationships just as Mother Earth is taking this time to heal, recuperate and take care of itself right now.