SINGAPORE – As Chinese New Year approaches, local former actress Jacelyn Tay, noting the fragility of life, encouraged her followers to spend time with their parents during the festive season.

On Feb 6, she shared on social media an experience with her mother. She wrote: “How many more Chinese New Years can my mum have? This was the question I reminded myself this morning when she wanted to stick her self-made red packet fishes with Scotch Tape all over her door frame.”

The 48-year-old single mum, who has a 12-year-old son, said she helped her mother to put up the red packets.

In another post on social media on Feb 7, Tay shared a photo with other Chinese New Year decorations taped to the door.

“I reminded myself again, ‘How many Chinese New Years can she have?’ Suddenly I have no more frustration,” she wrote. “Actually, the door now looks quite cute lah.”

Tay also shared that she would join her mother in eating ice cream, even though she would not buy any on her own.

She would also drink red wine when her mother wanted a glass, even though she herself would have a migraine after drinking, she wrote.

“I look at life this way: How many more days do I have here?” she wrote. “Time helps me treat a person with more respect, overlooking any trivial conflicting issues because I know we both don’t really have much time on earth.”

She continued to urge: “Look at them and ask yourself, how many more Chinese New Years can they have on earth? You will find that every irritating thing they do becomes cute.”