Sisters of Singapore January 12, 2026 20:59

Chapter 1: Susan Takes Charge

Younger women looked up to Susan. Never a hair out of place, and not looking a day over 40. Susan walked. She walked to work everyday. Everyday, too, she walked her two terriers around the portside and city centre; and on weekends, she made time to take her two white fluff balls, Siti and Rama, on longer garden park walks. This wasn't a fitness routine to clog up the digital air waves, for Susan, it was a lifestyle.

Susan was focussed and disciplined because she knows what matters. She set every Saturday aside to catch up with her friends in Chinatown. It was important that she and her girlfriends stay connected through change and changing times. Both Susan and Jennifer were worried about Fatimah, whom they had known since elementary school. Fatimah was tired, unhappy, and ever increasingly, felt trapped. At least, Susan and Jennifer could be there for their lifelong friend: their weekly catch-ups  gave Fatimah a crutch should she ever need it.

Susan had just turned 53. Her skin-health had always been a carefully crafted routine and she had stuck by it. Now, the benefits were on full display. The skin-health of friends her age told a very different story. Generally, her girlfriends fell into one of two categories: believing that 'to do nothing' was 'natural' and it was better to age 'gracefully': a flawed argument because the commitment to 'natural' is active- not neutral. The other group had bought into the hype of most luxury, branded, mass-produced skin-care ranges: expensive and of synthetic formula, this type of skincare gives mature skin more toxins to combat. Susan pondered the 'differences' between the first and second group of her friends: while the first group talked about a more natural philosophy, they may have just avoided skin-care because of the cost constraints of major brands. Age was catching up to them all and their skin health was paying a hefty price.

Susan lived and breathed the philosophies and benefits of natural skin care products, as she had always worked in conservation and environmental circles. She understood the tell-tale signs of whether or not a product was natural, or rather, 'how natural and fresh' it actually was: glass packaging was a total giveaway. The purer the product, the more likely it is to be packaged in non-transparent glass. If you believe in gaining full benefit from a natural product, make sure it is fresh and made in small batches. Dead energy has neither therapeutic benefit or aroma, nurturing texture or lifeforce.

Susan had nursed her mother through her final days on Earth. Grief once seemed insurmountable, but now Susan is beginning to feel her own lifeforce return. Experiencing her mother's passing gave her a very different perspective on life. As a woman in her middle years, Susan is aware of her responsibility to set an example.  She thinks about legacy and the really big picture. Little things and personal purchasing decisions have an impact on the whole.

Susan is now determined to do absolutely everything she can to sustain and manage her own health and wellness, and to set milestones and yardsticks for others. She laughs at the notion of 'self-care'; as if self-care is an optional extra? It is something that just has to be done, and done daily, just as surely as she walks to work and walks her two beautiful dogs in the botanical gardens. Susan is out there, and people see her. That is setting a standard and making a difference.

'Do what you can', don't add to the problem, and set an example for others.' Susan said her new motto to herself, out loud. A motto that is now front and centre of her purchasing decisions for not only her own natural skin-care range, but all personal health and beauty items, pet care and even household products.

It was Saturday. Susan smiled as she applied her new Katerina moisturiser, which followed her natural facial toner Wisdom, and French red clay cleansing bar Rose Quartz. Susan now uses natural hand-made products from an Australian company. Hand-made, natural and bottled in glass, Jamie Natural Health and Healing has been in business since the late 1990s. In every one of Susan's new, fresh, boutique products, Susan feels connected to nature. She can smell the roses and long lines of French lavender; and is confident that natural antioxidants like carrot seed will be working behind the scenes to strengthen and soften her skin as she prepares to brace the city.

Just as she was leaving, she paused. A spray of Jamie's natural perfume Tango Red to heighten her poise and declare her inner elegance. Now, Susan was taking charge. She is writing her own next chapter of life. 

Out and about in Singapore, Susan could hear nature whisper within her skin, through her softened, luscious hair, and all-over her body. She felt strong, vibrant and ready for challenges.

Fatima was ready to talk.

#