It’s been three days now since I last saw the sun. Everywhere you look you see life in monochrome. The overcast clouds, the wet streets, faces of people, the bare trees, the dust hanging in the polluted air – everything in grayscale.
What brought sunshine to my day was a small notebook, a gift from a friend way back. It is as small as a 10 euro bill and it is bound in Levi’s denim cloth. When my friend sent it to me she scribbled these words on the first page, “thanks for making me happy” plus a smiley next to her name. I now use it as a keeper of important computer numbers like my IP address, DNS configuration, Gateway, etc. It also contains some file paths, special html commands and even the procedure on how to hide the recycle bin from the desktop.
The notebook ferried me across the river I did not expect to cross today, but I was glad to do it anyway. As I leafed through it I remembered our first short encounters that set into motion all the clockwork of our future friendship. Perhaps the most unforgettable of those encounters was in an Ayala Café one cloudy afternoon in June. I could not recollect the points of our discussions then but I can never forget that from Ayala mall we walked all the way to the U.P campus. Universities have this kind of irresistible charm that draws me to them. Maybe she was also drawn to that charm because it seemed intentional that U.P was where we would be headed.
She impressed me as a person of poetry rather than of prose, of possibilities rather than of facts, of passion rather than of calculated risks. It seemed that to her life is like a series of stanzas and rhymes, a matter of seeing and feeling what other’s couldn’t, then making melodic verses out of them.
It suddenly began to rain slightly so we took cover under an acacia tree just outside the U.P. Campus. Still I could not recall now what we talked about then but it must have something to do with how our new-found friendship brought colors to an otherwise gray afternoon. What a joy it was to be in company with a true friend.
On my way to school this morning I was still thinking back on it and on other deep friendships I share with a good number of people back home. Happy memories of these people chiseled out the dullness of this day. The more I thought of them the more aware I became that sometimes a simple way to add sunshine to an overcast day is to think that you have made others happy and to feel that they have returned the favor.
I always get a kick reading this again and again! This made me want to write something about friendships too and how some are able to withstand the distance and changes. Like you, I have lots of special friends too. Some just lasted for a short time while others are still in my heart – but all are special nonetheless. Your blogs are really interesting because it covers a lot of areas. It always stimulate the mind, heart and spirit. Thanks!
hi padre, pasaylo-a ang dugay na wala ka simba
kuratan lang ko sa homepage kay morag duna kay spam commenter, you may need to beef up your spam filter. but i still thank this spam commenter, human or robot he may be, because it led me to this post. kahilak ko oi 
btw, because of your having shared with me the magic of linux, i am now deeply into it, here at home and at work. we have ubuntu on our more recent systems now, mainly as a way of telling microsoft’s bg that he can’t have it all.
open source rules, and so do you, padre
My, my! Interesting links! LOL. I am taken back to this entry and it is just nice to re-read it. What’s new with you? Too busy to write, huh? Well, whatever it is that is keeping you busy, I know the Lord is smiling on ya.