Four and a half years is a long time for teenagers. We tend to forget a lot of
things. I certainly could not remember very much about my primary schoolmates,
save for a few. Now, I was going to meet them all again. My friend sent me the
invitation via Facebook. He said that he was organizing a reunion for our
Standard 6 class. After our primary school education ended, everyone went their
separate ways. We promised to keep in touch but as everyone got busier and made
new friends, the promise was forgotten. Now, Vinesh was arranging a reunion. As
the day drew closer, I became curious about how my old friends might have
changed. Would Jing, the class clown still be as playful? Would Sumi the tallest
girl in our class then still hold that record now?
The reunion was held at a pizza restaurant. I was the first to arrive after
Vinesh. We chatted while waiting for the rest. A few minutes later, I saw a tall
slim Indian young lady making a beeline for
us. It was Sumitra. She had grown even taller but I was pleased to note that she
no longer towered over me. We were of equal
height. Within minutes, the rest of the group had turned up. There were loud
exclamations of disbelief at how much we had changed. The group grew so noisy
that other diners at the restaurant started casting disapproving looks at us.
We quietened down as the food was served. But it was impossible to remain
quiet for long with Jing around. There were a couple of times where I choked on
my food because he was so witty. However,
the group did turn silent when someone shared the sad news about his father's
business closing down. We all said some words of comfort and encouragement which
cheered him up. We asked one another for news about our primary school teachers.
This led to a suggestion that we visit our old school. Everyone supported the
idea and soon, plans were made for the visit.
We were all reluctant to say goodbye because we were enjoying ourselves so
much. The reunion helped us rediscover our friends. We promised to keep in touch
and this time, we made up our minds to keep that promise. |