Good friends are indeed hard to find and even harder to keep.  Since Pres+Ivy moved to Singapore in 2011, we have not gotten in touch with most our friends that much.  We’re lucky to have hosted a few who have visited us in Singapore for short weekends, but rarely do we get the chance to spend a good full day with them to catch up.

Read somewhere that as we age, we struggle to make new friends and keep old friendships as work and family as well as other commitments tend to get in the way.  It really requires some good efforts.  Pres+Ivy are very fortunate to be able to claim quite a few friends who stretch back nearly over 20 years who manage to stay true, close, and durable despite the distance.

Karina L is a very good friend of mine back in my university days and she’s one of those very few close friends I have who certainly made my UP days enjoyable and fun!  Imagine a friend who’s able to make you hang out with her grandma (hi Nana!) and laugh at her stories about practically anything and adore her for those beautiful poems she’s written!  We definitely miss Nana!

We have not touched base for over 10 years until her cousin, Celia S, also a very dear friend of mine came to Singapore with Chie S and spent time with us – very nice couple!

Pres+Ivy talked to them about this charity event we’ve been planning for our families in Payatas and Erap City and they volunteered that Karina L could take care of the event banners.  I dropped Karina L a message and she right away said yes and  sent me these layouts the following day:

Layout 1

Layout 2 – This was what we went for since green is ACTS29’s colour!

Next thing we knew, we’re at their family’s restaurant, catching up, telling us stories about her adorable daughter Cielo – she definitely takes after her mom!

Thank you so very much, Karina L for donating the tarpaulin banners for our charity event!

It made a very very nice backdrop and the children could not help taking their photos behind the Family Day banner!

To some, this may seem like a small thing only but this really set a very festive mood and made the Family Day extra special!  Best part of it: catching up with an old friend after a long time and knowing that nothing has changed!

Photo taken some 18 years ago!  From L-R: Dino P, Ivy, Andy L (in red shirt, all grown up now!), Karina L, Marian G, Momon S, Celia S, and Iskra L

Photo with Celia S and Chie S during their Singapore trip in 2013

“Life is an awful, ugly place to not have a best friend.” – Sarah Dessen