Franz Marie Cruz’s Diary

One day at a food court of one shopping center, I saw a group of 6 gray-haired elderly women, all looking healthy, well-to-do, and not-matronly but quite glam indeed.  They looked a lot like each other, most had short cropped silvery-gray hair, all had a pair of glasses perched at the tip of their noses, and some had a habit of looking over and not through it when talking to the other.  They were all appropriately and conservatively dressed for their age.  One had on a crisp white collared button down blouse, a pair of colored pants and flats.  While they found themselves a table in that mid-afternoon, a guy in his late 40’s (probably a son of one of the women and I imagined assumed the role of the driver for them that day) ordered drinks for them at a store.  When he finished ordering, he took a separate table next to the ladies not joining their circle. He was later joined by an elderly man with a full head of grey hair and presumably the same age as the 6 women.

I keep craning my neck to their direction, unabashedly looking at each personality in the group.  I am very much fascinated by them.  I too am a part of a close group of 6 girl friends.  Three of these people I have known and been good friends with for more than half my life.  And my fascination on these 6 elderly women stems out from my fantasy of seeing us 6 still together and going out for coffee when we do get to their age.  I envision that we too will still look completely glamorous and elegant despite our graying hairs, wrinkles and the puson.  By then we have witnessed so much more in each other’s lives.  More than our own proms, graduations, debuts, and weddings, there will be the birthday parties, basketball games, piano recitals, and graduations of our children.  For it is indeed one of life’s blessings to have a solid set of real good friends you have known for a long, long time.  There is only a myriad of sweet, touching, delightful and funny memories you have growing up with them.    I remember the countless sleepovers, GNOs, and cups of coffee we had together as we discussed “life” (school, parents, siblings, boys, career, etc) and the milestones in life we were there for each other from proms, graduations, planning each other’s debuts, first boyfriends, first break-ups, engagement news, wedding to a birth of the next generation. 

Hopefully, I’ll be able to eventually write more about each of my friends forever for these girls are among the big influences in my life.  Yet, I will start with one.  A piece that I have written no so long ago and had published as a testimonial to this one friend’s great character.

“Just as our friendship has evolved, she too has changed a lot over the 13 years we’ve been the best of friends.  We did not have so many things in common in the start, besides maybe the common barkada, shared passion for theater/musicals and books and the same dream to go to medicine.  She was no-nonsense, serious, sporty, tomboyish, astute, strong-willed while I was giggly, girlish, crazy-impulsive, outgoing and flighty.  She sees the glass as half-empty, I see it as half-full.  Her usual get-up would be a simple T, comfortable blue jeans and Nike rubbershoes while I was color-coordinated and matched from head to toe in skirts and blouses.  My bestfriend.  We later attended the same pre-med course, same med school where we became roommates for 3 years and now we will still  be taking our residency training at the same hospital albeit different departments.  Over the years, she has bloomed and changed.  Shopper na rin sya eventhough she often ends up buying gadgets more than clothes.  She’d sometimes try a different hair style from her usual one-length cut; would go out to get pedicures but no paint.  She has crushes now, a boyfriend and an ex too.  She is a dreamer, a romantic, a Maria Clara beneath that want-to-play-ball/no-fuss-no-nonsense façade and stance.  We’ve become the best of friends.  We may not always see eye to eye on all things, but I’ve always trusted her judgment and objectivity.  She has become one of the strongest influences in my life.  I know I can always count on her whenever, whatever and wherever and she the same way.   I know we will always be at each other’s sides.

But between the two of us, she’s the prettier, kinder, nicer, braver, more diligent, more cultured, more athletic, more talented, the one with the nicer hair (and legs), the better daughter to her parents, the better speaker, a helluva lot better singer and has one million times more admirers.  A major heartbreaker she was.  She is the kind of person who will make you want to become a better daughter/sister/friend/doctor.   This girl is very much blessed in so many ways and yet she has always remained grounded, generous and only willing to share her time, talent and blessings to everyone around her.”

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