Every Tuesday I would start with “Dear Naomi” continue with a complete body of heartfelt words and end with “lots of love, Tasha”. Naomi is the only person who speaks to my heart, she had been alone for too long when I discovered her that she was too upfront and boasted about herself. The way I discovered her was also so surreal for both me as well as her.
Ten years ago, one evening, I was walking down the road towards the orphanage after school, only to find a man and a woman arguing about something bothering both of them in the same way. Two weeks later, I saw both these two hand in hand as a cheerful and happy couple. Even though I live at the orphanage, that day I had to return my book to the library so skipped the turn. I tried not to notice that I was following both of them until a folded piece of paper jumped out of the man’s back pocket, to which he responded by looking at it , then squirming and walking away.
Due to some reason it was only I who dared to even look at the piece of paper. I wondered “Am I being fluttered by this tiny piece of paper? Just pass this, it’s a small piece of paper!”. But if I could stop my mind, my wonderful hands wouldn’t hesitate to pick it up and unfold it, unintentionally but curiously, I read the letters one after the other to spell out an address ‘Naomi Trendville, 127 A0V, Downtown Street, Lifco City’.
Writing
After reading this, my curiosity couldn’t contain itself, maybe, because I wanted to poke into others’ business or rather that I didn’t have anyone around me, no friends, no family, no mentor I was waiting for some chance like this.
But the fact that I started writing to her is still is a mystery to me . Well, no one can be blamed. Relationships are sometimes so surprising plus being mysterious. So. since then whenever I was happy or sad or whenever I needed someone beside me it was she who stayed by my side, shared my joy along with my grief, even though she was living far apart from me. No matter the distance. Every minute when I wrote to her and she replied back I felt so close to her. I hope it was the same for her as well.
We continued writing letters despite the changes in society that changed with the influence of technology, of course, we had to use it to get through our lives but nothing of that type can come between us. It was quite a mystery for me to see how Naomi appeared, looked and dressed, but I dared not to question so as to have a smooth friendship.
Meeting
However, two years ago she herself suggested mee ting. Naomi was many miles apart from me, both of us were living on two islands facing each other, so it is a must to be travelling by water transportation. “…will be there at the port by 9.00 am in the morning, so excited and looking forward to seeing you, but only on one condition; you must promise me not be so surprised to see me…” she wrote in the letter before the meeting. I replied “…I will be there at 8.00, an hour before and will promise to be not so surprised to see you…” This did give me an extra strange feeling besides excitement. But I disregarded it.
A very remarkable day for me, someone who had been the closet of life and the drawers of my secrets in the past eight years, I was meeting up with her, my bestie by then. I took a week off work, got myself ready, cleaned my house, got Naomi some gifts and went by taxi towards the port at 7.00 instead of 8.00 in the morning, due to my excitement. At around 8.15 I was holding a sign reading ‘Naomi Trendville’ waiting for her.
A sound of a cruiser’s hooting, I stood up and took a few steps forward to the ship’s anchoring place, standing in a clear place so that she can spot me easily.
Soon the passengers came out one by one, my heart started racing at this point, really fast beating……just then I saw something that made me take some steps backward, a pretty girl with black straight hair on a wheelchair holding a piece of board spelling out ‘Tasha Flaming I couldn’t move for a minute or two due to the shock. Soon. it was her moving towards me, anyhow I couldn’t help myself . I ran towards her and her with tears of joy.
She too in return hugged me with a smiling face. I really don’t clearly remember how much time I spent hugging her, later we were moving down the port towards the café and I started talking with her, it was then I noticed that she was only responding with her head and eyes. I wanted a clear understanding about her so I started saying two more sentences while closely observing her, but no change.
Next, I started using sign language to spell out ‘Bestie’. Amazingly to which she responded ‘BFF’. using sign language . That’s when I got to know what her story was. From that second, I felt that I am supposed to stay for her in each and every way. It was a bit strange for me to feel that way after living all alone by myself, but nothing like mental or physical obstacles can hinder friendship.
Opportunity
She did leave after staying for a week with me, it was after a long time I had such fun…I felt lonely the minute she left me. Later After almost a year she said that she has been transferred by her company to a branch on my island. What an opportunity! I offered her shelter at my house immediately, it would be good to have someone like her in the house. Since then we have been living together as Best Friends.
I am not ashamed to say that, she is my bestie indeed I am very happy to have a good friend like her, a person so selfless to open her heart with a huge space and fill it with me. Although we live in the same house we still write to each other every Tuesday. Because that’s the way Naomi opens her heart.
Sometimes I wonder to myself, what if my hands had been lazy to pick up the piece of paper that particular day, how would it be for both of us? Well, friendship is truly a destiny, we make friends in our own way. I have made a friend who doesn’t speak with the mouth but from the heart.