Dinner with Old Friends

Since the friends (and their cat) were on a staycation at Capella, we met them for dinner at The Knolls. We didn't mind the drive out on a night when the dog was concussed at home after playing all day in school. She would be fine staying home alone for a few hours. 

Shared starters, and we had mains of char kway teow, soto ayam, steamed atlantic cod, and linguine marinara. Then desserts were shared too. I was totally stuffed by the end of the night. I had bravely picked a carb bomb of char kway teow. LOL No regrets though. I had a 5km sprint + HIIT thing with some friends the next day that burnt off all the ingested calories.   

It was lovely to see the friends. We hadn’t seen them since February. These two years, we didn't get to travel, but we were respectively flooded with work, and many charity projects. Our bedtime kept getting earlier and earlier; longer dinners were virtually impossible to organize because we value our sleep too much. Our schedules simply didn't allow for a get-together till tonight. There was plenty of great conversation and laughter. 

It's amazing how the older we get, the more comfortable we are in one another's company. We've not always shared the same outlook on life, I think. A decade ago, we had different priorities. We were friends, but yet we seemed more like acquaintances. We were friends because we had similar schedules. But I couldn't see many shared values. Then our paths diverged. Some dropped off the radar, some hung around. There's nothing to do with grace or magnanimity. Nobody pulled a fraud or a betrayal. Grudges seem petty and the emotions spent on them felt like a waste of time. I'm not saying that it's their fault or my fault. There's no fault. It's just... it just is. However, it doesn’t mean that we ought to be friendly with one another now. It’s unnecessary. If our lives don’t meet on day-to-day pathways, and we no longer share similar views on fundamental matters and values, then there isn’t a need to force it. We simply remain civil.

For these friends, our values seem to align now. I’m also comfortable in their company. Getting reacquainted with their opinions and outlook on life now is a pleasurable thing. It doesn’t happen often. Stripped of all youthful hotheadedness and armed with deeper life experiences, we get to have way more honest conversations. I love how frank we can be with one another.