Dear John

I have a dream-catcher hanging on my cubicle’s wall. Black threads weaving through each other. Each juncture tied by a knot. Everything enclosed in one wooden circle. How one point of that circle connects to another is a narrative of organized chaos. No clear line can be traced, only detours and ties.

Ties.

I fancy that the threads in my dream-catcher were once flimsy. That at one point they were rolled up in a tube. Perhaps let loose, they wandered aimlessly. But then, in that circle, as they overlap and create asymmetries, their sinuous nature fades. They support each other. They make themselves sturdy. And what becomes is a pattern of connections, borne of unexpected twists that now… catch dreams.

In this cobweb of a life, I am happy to have met you, to have listened to your story, to have learned from you. My weekend retreat taught me to own my story and that story includes finding you. Yep, you are about to leave. Our days are already numbered. It pains me that we met you a little too late but I know that that pain pales in comparison to what your Siopao must be feeling right now.

True love casts out all fears.

Fear not John. Find comfort in the love that your friends have for you, in the love that your Siopao shares with you, in the love that He selflessly gives you.

Everything happens for a reason. Everything has its time. For now, our season is that of parting but as we tread through this juncture and trace our stories, know that the tie we made shall support you and keep you sturdy… it shall support us, keep us sturdy.

Friend, keep courage, keep faith. I choke as I write this but know that we are behind you. Go ahead… and catch your dreams!