The wonderful thing about words, I've realised, is that they keep what the memory and pictures cannot. My favourite things about these two years tend to fall under categories of "prolonged processes" and "fleeting moments" that cannot be composed into postcards. So I'm writing them down, and if you've loved them as much as I have, we're going to find a way to do them again (:
In no order of merit
1) All the in-between (classes) moments with Gaby, invariably spent in the canteen at our favourite Sunshiney seat. These moments were spent either in close confidence, silent companionship, exchanging TV knowledge, amusing bickering, and always, always eating.
2) The pink moments with Siobhan. I still don't really know what we do, but it always involves a lot of giggling at the stupidest things, and a lot great advice from her on matters of the heart.
3) The few movies (memorably, Invisible Waves, Into Great Silence and Little Miss Sunshine) with Chen and occasionally others (I would name them, but they keep changing). It was always terribly exciting not knowing what we had paid for, and immensely satisfying to walk out of them shaking in laughter and having completely different ideas of what happened in the cinema.
4) The mornings spent with Colin (usually Thursdays), just before he elopes with Myf. Our mornings are always spent talking about everything and nothing in particular, and always in resulting in a beautiful heartbreak. Oh, and I'll miss those pen-paper-and-coin Quorridor games, in which we would always know who would win at least 6 moves before completion. We never found a way to play well.
5) The moments during KI lessons where we would all giggle - the class at John Butterworth's omnipotence, and Mr Lim at some unfathomable Mormon reason. (Okay, I know *now* that he's Methodist.) I also love the one-to-one conversations in Mr Lim's potpurried office, and I know that I got lucky again, to get a mentor who cared this much.
6) The daily walks from school down to Farrer Road/Adam Road. Bukit Timah Road, I think, is my second favourite road, next to the stretch of Balestier I live on. I love the quaint small shops and the sunny, sleepy sidewalks and it always saddens me a little when I have to board the bus.
And when I had memorized all the shops and little roads by heart, Liangwei came along and made sure that there was always something new and something gastronomically delicious to focus on.
7) The msn chatting with Seng. Unlike the above, this has not been determined by the physical presence of HC. And has been all the more lovely for it.
8) Great conversations with Yunsong, always perfectly balanced between the meaningful and the hilarious. And the dinners, a habit I hope will continue. Unlike most of the friendships I've had, I don't think I grew into this one. I think I fell headlong into it. And this rabbit hole adventure has been exciting. I suspect it always will.
9) Quirky AEP moments, which made school feel like home. It was the feeling that we could do anything in the world, that we were free and powerful and creative. I loved the being around Ms Kee and the generosity of Mr Tan, who always made us feel like they, in spite of everything, loved us. And not forgetting, the conversations with Mr Lee, especially the one we had in my little gallery, which we thought was entirely private except that the box magnified our voices and everyone heard my angst about being unbearably light and his wanting to be a nurse. I think what I loved best about HCAEP moments was that it made an incredibly normal thing (going to school) feel like a disguise for our superhero identities which allowed us to drive out of school during lesson time, wear pathetic shreds for clothes, dance like nobody was watching, cook in the middle of paints, brushes and other unsightly things and build things from scratch.
I liked how my cellmate Pow would speak ever so gently and adorably when we talked (I figure its because he thinks my being short is a handicap, lol), how Yingshi would propose every so often, and how Yeenseen would wrap her arms around me and tell me that she loved me. Or my body. I think Yeenseen thinks they're the same. And how Shum would give us all a bit of vinyl so we could have Phua Chu Kang moles/weird tattoos. How Sophia and I survived The Incredible Coursework Nights together, how Siewch and I would talk and get ourselves all depressed, how the boys would concoct songs and sing in perfect harmony and make everyone laugh, and how everyone got excited over Pizza Days, Sandwich Parades, and highly unsanitary Fondue Parties. And oh, I will never forget the night we all put up elaborate acts of cannibalism and deaths to make Ms Kee and Mr Lee feel bad about delaying our dinner. (It worked, haha. Dinner was on them.)
10) The mishmash crowd of Sixoh. Always something hilarious happening. I love the way we're all so hilariously different, and how we talk little and do lots, and how everything's so laidback and simple it makes me feel like we're part of a kampung. And someone's always teaching me a new way of seeing.
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