a pact set in stone...

One last, promise!

Keeks and I have been talking about our plans to leave the country and build our lives abroad. She also made me promise that in the future, even though my friends and I are all living separate lives, we would still take the time to catch up and communicate with each other. I, of course, said yes.

This got me thinking. Out of all the relationships I built in my life, how many are still standing? I really wish everything could stay the way they are. Just like back in college, everything was simpler and we all managed to have fun through it all. I remember my best friend when I was in Kinder Garden, Krissy. In all honesty, we haven't talked since we graduated that year.

Very much like this country. Did Rizal, Bonifacio, Aguinaldo, and all the other heroes think that the democracy they fought for would bear fruit like this? Did they intend for the constitution to be used against the government's constituents, the same people it was made to protect? We can't help but question the results of our actions today. History shows us that intent has nothing to do with the future. The future happens despite (not because) of our intentions. I may very well and sincerely want to stay in touch with all my friends, because they represent all that was good in my younger (makes me feel old, using this word) years.

Are our promises really set in stone? And for that matter, what assurance do we have that the feelings of brotherhood and warmth we have towards our friends today will survive all the years being apart?