People, Places, Familiar Faces

Tonight was the beginning,
"the beginning of the end"
according to our school.

We dined,
we reflected
and processed,
beneath the arched ceilings of our chapel,
between the pews,
in the dark,
illuminating the room with candlelit cellophane covering handcrafted tinted lanterns.
It was beautiful.

And even though I have been accused of crying at the drop of a hat,
I didn't shed a tear.
Though I definitely came close.

I can't say I'm close to everyone in my year level,
I can't even say that I tolerate them all.
But these are people who I have grown up with.

They are the victims of bad moods,
the opponents in bitch fights,
the sources of trivial gossip.

They are the faces in my memories,
the smiles in the morning,
the hugs in the corridors,
and the laughter that lights up each corner of my life.

And as we are engulfed by the uncertain future,
they are the open arms that we long to shelter in forever.