friendships for life

cheesy title, i know. but i couldn't express it better.

as i get older, i cherish more and more the friendships that span years, even decades.

yesterday, it was with high school friends, that's easily almost three decades of being friends! we were a huge group in malate. and we just kept on reminiscing about the kalandian, the heartaches, the fashion emergencies, the sex scandals. and we ended up just laughing till our bellies ache, literally!

before that, it was dinner with my other g-friends, friends ive had since i was just starting out with my career. i met them mostly through my ex then. we remain in touch. and would have our occasional dinners, especially when one of the group flies in from out of town.

with both groups, we don't get together as often. once every quarter is quite frequent. but we pick up where we left off. we update each other's love lives, sex lives, professional lives. we follow-up some hanging questions. and the best part, they don't care who you are now, whether you are a hotshot designer, or a big-time sales manager, or a CEO, you are still just one of us. humbling, yes, but also very gratifying.

there's really no need for pretensions, for buttering up. you are yourself, warts, pimples, farts and all. and you will bitch at each other, tear each other down. because after all that, you still hug and say 'i miss you' and 'im so happy for you'.

as i treasure new friendships, i always make room for the ones that have lasted for life. nothing, no one really replaces them.