Musketeer Reunion

Just had a stupendous night. I'm beaming from ear to ear.

After dinner with the cell, I met Mom (along with Desiree) at City Hall MRT. Prior to that she'd called and SMS-ed me a zillion times to tell me which station, which carriage (first or last) and what time. I think it's her and Dad's first time on the train. Met up with Auntie Luan Imm and Isabelle who were together with them and we headed to their new house for an old friend reunion.

To digress a bit, their new house is gorgeously roomy with a really cooling patio. Already hinted to Mom to buy a corner lot just like that, or the neighbour's place so we can all be a big happy family here in Singapore. But we sorta know deep down that familiarity breeds contempt and absence makes the heart grow fonder.

It was really fun listening to Dad, Uncle Boo & Uncle Kum Weng talk about their past. Some we've heard before, most we've not. Now that we're all grown up, it's no holds barred for our ears. After 2 bottles of wine, all the dirty secrets started coming out.

From joining a church to chase girls ('Sadly, none of us got converted,' lamented Dad) to how Uncle KW was the innocent sidekick, driving the boys to the girls' houses, because that's how old fashioned courting was done - talking by the gate to finally sitting in a girl's living room. Apparently a lot of backstabbing was done with secret rendezvouz, more than one of them secretly seeing the same girl. When they couldn't find someone in the group, they automatically could guess what he was up to.

All the old flames' names started popping up. But we surmised that as cool as they made it out to be, my Dad and his old primary school friends were not exactly the cool kids. The best part is simply how they've stuck it out, stayed so close all these years and dated so closely that all their wives are also best/good friends.

Vulgarities started spewing over some lost Musketeers, those who've gone abroad and forgotten them. Who come home but act chilly over a cold meal, or don't even bother to call. With the advent of the Internet and iPad, we started Google-ing a fairweather friend's house in Australia, with his lake and boats. The stalking was hilarious. After that they tried to Facebook search a Gunasegaran Subramaniam, another old forgotten friend close to Uncle Boo. And they howled like hyenas over how they bullied him into going for a 'massage' at Guna's coming of age, especially how he emerged all smiles.

Mom and Auntie Luan Imm used to matchmake people: Indian girl with Indian guy, short girl with short guy, broken hearted girl with broken hearted guy. Unfortunately one of the pairings (coincidentally another friend who's forgotten his roots) ended up in the girl turning gay. More surprising is that she's someone prominent in Penang. Then there was Black Kam Weng, the Indian adopted by a Chinese family. They called him Uncle Kum Weng's black counterpart. The night started turning into a GG episode.

Finally before our family went home, Dad thrust an imaginary sword into the air, 'All for one and one for all!' and Uncle KW followed suit. The wine. It does things to people. Though I must say Dad's always quirky any old day. As he walked out, he tried to remember, 'Hey Boo, who's the 3rd musketeer who died in the show?' But none of us could remember. But we all knew which Musketeers have died in their version of the 5 Musketeers.

Wonder what my story will be someday. I hope I have my childhood friends with me, like an extended family. Moments like these are my ultimate favourite in life.