I was smothered in the warmth

Of cottonwool softness

when I cast my eyes

On the friend of my college days,

Anxiously waiting for me

In the shaded porch,

Under the bougainvillea covered roof.

After the passage of decades,

In the stillness of time,

We gazed into each other’s eyes.

Tossing formalities aside,

We hugged each other tightly

And felt the years shedding away;

We were back in the dorms,

Sharing a minute room,

Living the mundane days

Before the drowsy “Good Nights”.

In the mornings,

We rubbed the sleep away

From bleary eyes

And reluctantly got ready

For the prosaic lectures

In the boring lecture halls.

Years sped by

Without drama and fanfare,

But with youth’s resilience.

Thus it was in the present

To be caught in astonishment

In recapturing the joyful youth,

Undiminished in intensity

Despite the passage of time.

Remembered in clarity,

Our silver years rejuvenated;

We bowed our heads in muted ‘Thanks’..