Fabian Cuffley, or Fabian uncle as i call him, showed up in his trademark Ray-Bans, monkey cap and a sleeveless jacket. With his 3/4th pajama and a strong smell of cigarette hovering on him, he was carrying two boxes of cake and two bottles of wine. He wished us a merry Xmas, and prayed for my dad and family. He praised dad as a good human being and a great cook and teacher.
I could not help but notice the warmth and love that was present in that moment. Fabian uncle is the guy one would remember when Loyal World first opened. He wore a crisp white shirt and tie, and with his round head would hover across the racks. He has known dad for a long time, and they have become good friends. Through his heart attack and dad's cancer, they have been there for each other. Fabian uncle, with his stories and choice of words, sends us into peels of laughter.
But, what surprises me is that their friendship has been forged without Facebook, e-mail, Wattsapp or even text messages. They talk briefly on the phone from time to time, but when they do meet, they talk for hours. This is something i'm glad to have inherited from dad.
I envy my aunts and uncles. Yes, they have dabbled in Facebook and the maximum they have done to reconnect is to "poke", rather than send a friend request. But the friendships they have forged in their teens and twenties are still strong. Even if they haven't called each other in months or seen each other in years, whenever they meet, its like they met just yesterday. One would wonder if they had been friends for lifetimes, or Siamese twins joined at the hip at birth. They laugh, they giggle, they hug; sometimes you would pass them off as well dressed lunatics.
But isn't that the beauty of it? A friendship that is not based on whether you hit the 'like', 'comment', or 'share'; it doesn't matter if you did not reply to a text or did not speak for hours on the phone. These bonds truly stand the test of time. Its no longer the other person's caste, gender, belief, differences, mistakes; you transcend all that and become soul friends. You are happy just being there with him or her, and don't give two hoots to what the world comments on your relationship. To you, and your buddy, its one of the best things that could ever happen in life, finding a soul friend.
And so this Christmas, i wish you and your soul friend(s) the best of times and hope your bond strengthens and deepens. And if you haven't found your soul friend yet, I pray to Santa that he packages one for you. All you need to do is to keep an open heart. Your gift might be waiting for you right around the corner.
MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!
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