I never knew it required so much courage to tell a friend that you hope to be friends.

But if there were no honesty in friendship, what is it, but an empty vessel of treasured memories?

Pretty Moments

A birthday is just another ordinary day made extraordinary by memorable encounters with special persons. Nineteen doesn't feel very much different from eighteen, yet being nineteen seems to be a whole lot different from being eighteen. Nineteen for me means an emergence from safety nets; it means adapting to reality and the world outside; it means making sense of loss and making sense of life; it means defining my faith; it means learning to let go; it means having the courage to pursue my dreams, my love. It means becoming independent, and being less dependent on others - on their opinions, on their directions, and on their needs.

To be honest, I was surprised to receive so many greetings from so many people, many of whom I did not expect to remember my birthday. Facebook probably got a role to play in this, but I'm still glad that these friends bothered to send a note or two. The constant barrage of SMSes really made my day!

Most importantly, thanks for these pretty moments:

NYDC; delicious dessert!; interesting conversations. I feel like we have become closer as friends (:

Depot Heights; angst on work, universities, applications; catching up; awesome shirt!. I miss not meeting the Scouties for so long!

Changing Appetites; the usual incestuous accusations among the Coks; The Lovers' Book for the lover who's best at everything; surprise!. You guys never fail to make our meetings so amusing and so much fun!

Big O; baby Evans!; awesome photo-board!; Sakae Sushi; LOL elitist talk; catching up; McCafe. I think it's really nice how we are becoming more and more comfortable with one another, and letting one another know more and more about ourselves, after every meeting (:

Aristotle once said, "Wishing to be friends is quick work, but friendship is a slow-ripening fruit." Other than sweet memories or pretty moments, I think that the best gift anyone can receive is a present of deepening friendship!