time does fly by

So I was browsing through my old shoeboxes (or rather, photo-boxes) the other day and guess what I dug up!! Hahaha :)

My first real barkada :) From left to right: that's Belle, Angela, and me standing up. Sara and Dap sitting down. I think this was taken 1st year High School (tama ba?)? Yeah, because the next year, Sara was whisked off to sunny California, leaving us to rot here in Manila. Hehe. We actually have a name for our group (didn't we all during High School?!), pero sobrang nakakahiya, kaya wag na natin i-share. Hahaha.

I remember we used to share everything. We'd go to the mall and buy our fill of Sweet Valleys and Love Stories. Back then, Love Stories was selling for around P80/book ata? Or was it P50-P60? So we'd shell out around P20 each so we can buy one book. Who gets to take it home first depends on who likes the book best. We'd also buy several bottles of nail polish and color each others' nails and swap shades afterwards. Angela's parents were a bit strict though (and she personally didn't like going to malls) so she would often bail on us, and being the selfish, immature girls that we were, we decided that she's not allowed to read the books or use the nail polish that we bought without her. Kasi nga, di siya nag-contribute sa barkada fund :)

Anyway, I miss them.

Belle's the princess of the group. Hehehe. Not the snotty princess ha.. She's just this super poised lady, even her smile in the picture is a bit demure. Ha! Always prim and proper :) And she's still the same now :)

Angela's a bit of a tyrant. Haha. Super taray! What she wants to say, she'll say. And when she talks, she talks rapidly in straight English. With her matching curly hair, who wouldn't be scared?! There was this one time when we'd all eat lunch in the cafeteria and she wasn't "allowed" to come with us because she had a fight with somebody in the group (secret na lang kung sino.. pero hindi ako.. hehe). She's very independent and headstrong, and the last time we hung out, she's still the same :) But what I like about her is that she knows what her principles are and she stands by them. And underneath that mataray exterior (I think I learned how to do the one-raised-eyebrow thing from her), she's actually very sweet.

Sara. Sara's like the bond that keeps us together. She has something in common with each of us, and that makes her the perfect glue :) It's funny, because we weren't really great friends when she was still here in Manila, but when she transferred continents, we'd write to each other like once every two months (as in snail mail.. yes, with stamps..), and it's always 4-5 pages long every time. She'd also send pictures constantly, and I envied her because apparently, the studios there in the US don't do shotgun poses (you know, those poses where you have to hold your arms in a fixed way, basta.. hahaha). She's also very reserved and quiet, no drastic mood changes whatsoever, so she got along with each of us just fine :)

Dap, hehehe. She's the mother hen of the group :) No boy can come nearer than ten feet to any of us when she's around. She's always fussing over us, and she gave me that sense of security, that I'll always have someone to back me up if somebody messes with me. Hehe. Love her to bits.

In a weird way, we're still very much the same as who we were back in High School. Our looks may have changed a bit, but personality-wise, we're still the same. There are a few major differences though - Sara's now a mom to little Iya; Anj is somewhere in Laguna, living her chosen vocation. We hardly see each other anymore - actually, the last time we got together as a group was when Sara came over for a short visit (see, she's still the glue :)).

It's a bit sad that we don't get together that often. If possible, I'd like to be a part of even the smallest events in their lives, most especially because I feel our friendship is one of the foundations of who I became in High School and ultimately, who I am today. I am happy though because I am sure, 100% confident, that no matter when we'll see each other again, we'll still be great friends.

But hey, I'll be seeing you guys August next year!! Yaaayyy! :)