Trip Down Memory Lane

Ten years is a rather long time in a 15 year old’s perspective. I could not at that time imagine myself being 25. I thought 25 was a grand old age where you are responsible and married and you know all responsible. Life at that time was still full of possibilities and the sky was the limit. The autograph books were full of poetry and lines of meeting later down in life. It has been 10 years since we graduated. Up until I went to college and met this wonderful group of friends, I was like Kipling’s cat- walking my wild lonesome way. But, in college six of us got together and formed a “group.” They are a wonderful set of friends, with whom I would have liked to keep in touch with every single day. But life happens, and now we are a long way away from sweet sixteen. The college we went to was a pre-university one (like last two years of high school here) and after that we all chose different paths. We all scattered to different parts of India and later on to different parts of the world and I think I can safely say none of us are in a career relevant to our undergrad degrees.

The memories of those two years resurfaced today after a long time starting with an email from one of the girls. Some of us had maintained contact with one or the other sporadically and I was especially lucky to have been able to attend the engagement of another friend while I was on vacation in India. Our lives today are probably different than what we envisioned it would be. I know mine is. None of us can plan for what happens to us. Life sometimes throws a curve ball and then all you can do is ride the tide.

We are at different stages in life. The last one of us is getting married. One is already a mother. Two more are on the way to sweet motherhood. When I write this, I think of the years that flew by, one picture that comes to my mind for some reason is sweet bright eyed J (you know who you are!) in a black top and black and blue jumper posing for a picture on a rock in the middle of the lake. I look at her picture today. She is still beautiful and bright eyed, and there lurks a hint of something naughty in her face reminiscent of MIC days. But there is something else too- something that cannot be put into words- in her face. Maybe it is because of the tiny human sitting on her lap which added the strength and character to her face which was not there at giggly sixteen. The choices we made, the experiences we had, the people we met, the places we were all made us what we are today.

Here is to us, dear friends… I wish us all a life filled with miracles. Let the fire never be out at our hearths and love always fill our hearts. As time flies past, may we experience joys and wonders anew. May the happiness make us grateful, the trials make us sweeter and the sorrows mature us.

I love you all and miss you!