FIN
- Phontaine -

I've not tire myself talking about people so here we go again.

It's a good day today. An old new friend found me at the bookstore after work and we had coffee and a chat. We talked about 1Malaysia, Malaysian politics and bureaucracy (yes, me), Takeshi, the transition, the hazards of crossing the roads in KL and a whole lot more.

Before that, throughout the day, I had short chats, long chats, abrupt chats with a few other friends, and it felt uplifting.

You see, one of the things that came up is whether I'm really happy to be back here because I was really looking forward to it. And I told him, I 'came home' to a life that didn't turn out exactly how I pictured it to be. The hues are different. I thought I was returning to the same green grass as how I left it, but the trees are taller now. Things have changed as they should be and I began to miss several aspects of Miri. Like the laid-back life. But when I was in Miri, I cannot deny missing KL too. The excitement. I wish I can have the best of both worlds, I said, but I can't.

Maybe you haven't found it, and you will he said. I believe he is right.

But there's a variable involved that may change your perception about any place. It's the people. Sometimes you find friends. Occasionally you discover great friends.

I was asked to write something on a card this morning for the family of a colleague who just passed away and I had no clue. I don't know them personally nor am I used to dealing with deaths. Immediately, one friend suggested what to write, the other actually printed out 2 pages of sample lines he googled. Unbelievable. They're friends, but they still surprise me.

Change happens partly because people move on. But that's OK and it's OK to create new friendship. It's when one day you get a surprise hello from them, that's enough to make your day. Just like it did mine.

For the print out, the online message, the text, the lunch yesterday, the coffee, the visit, you're the people who gave a little extra. At least today, I found it.

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