The New Year greetings card from Soho China chairman Pan Shiyi (pictured) and his wife and chief executive Zhang Xin may have arrived a bit late this year, but it was well worth the wait.
While most people usually run out of things to say after four or five words (by the way, the most popular phrase this year has been Wishing you a better 2009), Mr Pan and his wife managed more than 1,000 words on their reflections of 2008 and hopes for the future.
The philosophical message begins with a mention of the death of Mr Pan s mother last year, then goes on to comment on the catastrophic Sichuan earthquake and the Wall Street meltdown before taking a more upbeat note on the Beijing Olympics, followed by the high hopes that accompany Barack Obama s election as president of the United States.
The couple said we should not be alarmed by the collapse of the time-worn institutions of the old world, which they described as a rampant cancer undermining the fabric of human society and the very substance of our planet.
Rather we should embrace the new world where the purpose of business is to create both wealth and spiritual wealth.
In the New Year, we look set to experience deep societal transformation which is both unprecedented and fundamental, the message continues.
Our greatest challenge at this time comes not from financial depression or diminishing material wealth, for as long as we are neither wasteful nor greedy a depressed economy cannot ruin us.
The true challenge is to realise that we have been too prejudiced, our loyalties too narrow, and our truthfulness, unity and justice far too lacking.
Hear, hear!
Let s not get too carried away by the good start to the year made by the Hang Seng Index.
Working for a better new world would seem more appropriate, while Lai See is more than happy to receive such inspiring New Year messages, no matter how late.
