Published in Edge Davao Business Weekly
Christmas is fast-approaching and it is becoming more and more obvious; my mornings are spent freezing in bed, my ears are almost at the point of vomiting yuletide carols, everyone I meet seems to be overly giddy, and glitter gets in my eyes every time I visit a mall.
I have grown accustomed to the so-called traditions and shenanigans that go with the Christmas season; however, I have realized that my Christmases are fast becoming a time to schedule reunions and other nostalgic get-togethers. Being a partyphile, one would guess that I would be up for any, and every, get together, and to some extent, one would have guessed correctly.
However, it gets a little annoying to have to attend these little reunions with friends I have not met since last December. Don’t get me wrong; I would love to see them again, but where and when I see them… therein lays the problem.
You see, my High School clique has asked me every December, since graduating High School, if I wanted to attend our mini-reunions. After confirming my attendance,they proceed to ask me (even if they already have some place in mind), in a uniquely annoying manner like only they can, where I would want to meet them; and I would always tell them that I’d like to go to some club; get wasted, dance a little and laugh a lot.
At the back of my mind, I already know that they wouldn’t agree; clubs are much too crowded and noisy; there would be no chance for a proper conversation. Apparently, they feel the sudden urge to “catch up” and probably imply how well they have been doing in their chosen careers, their love life, and how huge their pockets have gotten.
I agree to meet them in some resto or café, knowing that I would, once again, waste hours of my precious time. You see, we have nothing in common anymore; we don’t go to the same High School, we don’t like the same stuff, we almost always, have nothing to talk about, heck, we don’t even live in the same island! Instead of actually having a good time with my High School buddies, my Christmas season turns into one big, boring, and uneventful reunion. And most of this I attribute to the wrong choice of location to hold our reunions.
If there is one thing I realized from attending too many pathetic reunions, it is the fact that the impressions you make on your friends last until the next December reunion, so make wiser choices when dealing with “long lost” friends, go for something unexpected, and realize that “catching up” doesn’t have to mean long, dwindling hours of senseless conversation.
Confession #12
People often ask me why I feel the need to suggest a reunion in some noisy bar, when I already know that my friends would turn the idea down. I never felt the need to explain myself, but the truth is: I’m still hoping that maybe this Christmas, they would finally agree. Why?
Because there, in the middle of some loud bar, where uninteresting and sometimes boastful, hypocritical conversations are not possible, I realize who among my High School clique have remained to be my friends.
Who shares a seat with me?
Who tells me I have had enough to drink?
Who rubs my back while I’m hurling out vomit in some public (eeew) toilet?
Who texts me a couple of minutes after, just to check if I arrived home safely?
All these questions lead me to discover who have remained to be my friends, in the truest sense of the word… and isn’t that one of the best gifts one could receive this Holiday season?
So go on partyphiles, spread the cheer and the beer this Christmas and have a no-holds-barred night-out with those long-lost friends!
I have grown accustomed to the so-called traditions and shenanigans that go with the Christmas season; however, I have realized that my Christmases are fast becoming a time to schedule reunions and other nostalgic get-togethers. Being a partyphile, one would guess that I would be up for any, and every, get together, and to some extent, one would have guessed correctly.
However, it gets a little annoying to have to attend these little reunions with friends I have not met since last December. Don’t get me wrong; I would love to see them again, but where and when I see them… therein lays the problem.
You see, my High School clique has asked me every December, since graduating High School, if I wanted to attend our mini-reunions. After confirming my attendance,they proceed to ask me (even if they already have some place in mind), in a uniquely annoying manner like only they can, where I would want to meet them; and I would always tell them that I’d like to go to some club; get wasted, dance a little and laugh a lot.
At the back of my mind, I already know that they wouldn’t agree; clubs are much too crowded and noisy; there would be no chance for a proper conversation. Apparently, they feel the sudden urge to “catch up” and probably imply how well they have been doing in their chosen careers, their love life, and how huge their pockets have gotten.
I agree to meet them in some resto or café, knowing that I would, once again, waste hours of my precious time. You see, we have nothing in common anymore; we don’t go to the same High School, we don’t like the same stuff, we almost always, have nothing to talk about, heck, we don’t even live in the same island! Instead of actually having a good time with my High School buddies, my Christmas season turns into one big, boring, and uneventful reunion. And most of this I attribute to the wrong choice of location to hold our reunions.
If there is one thing I realized from attending too many pathetic reunions, it is the fact that the impressions you make on your friends last until the next December reunion, so make wiser choices when dealing with “long lost” friends, go for something unexpected, and realize that “catching up” doesn’t have to mean long, dwindling hours of senseless conversation.
Confession #12
People often ask me why I feel the need to suggest a reunion in some noisy bar, when I already know that my friends would turn the idea down. I never felt the need to explain myself, but the truth is: I’m still hoping that maybe this Christmas, they would finally agree. Why?
Because there, in the middle of some loud bar, where uninteresting and sometimes boastful, hypocritical conversations are not possible, I realize who among my High School clique have remained to be my friends.
Who shares a seat with me?
Who tells me I have had enough to drink?
Who rubs my back while I’m hurling out vomit in some public (eeew) toilet?
Who texts me a couple of minutes after, just to check if I arrived home safely?
All these questions lead me to discover who have remained to be my friends, in the truest sense of the word… and isn’t that one of the best gifts one could receive this Holiday season?
So go on partyphiles, spread the cheer and the beer this Christmas and have a no-holds-barred night-out with those long-lost friends!
