Depth

I had a birthday earlier this week. I'd been mentally prepared to see it slide into obscurity given that it coincided with Diwali, and that the husband wasn't here to make a big deal of it. I'd had no expectation from the day, and been reluctantly ready to let it go by, without announcement.

But I guess every once in a while, life hands out presents in bounteous, joyful measures, and people surprise you in ways you never expected.

Amid the zillion phone calls wishing me a happy birthday that morning, one friend - more precisely, my brother's friend - wishes me the same, then insists on taking me out to lunch when he hears I have no definite plans for the day. I think he's kidding. Turns out, he's not. And so, I get treated to a fabulous lunch at one of my favourite restaurants in the city, in the company of another friend who joins in too, making the day shine a little brighter! The afternoon spins by with the excitement of shared stories, laughter and a delectable feast, culminating in a celebration involving a very delicious chocolate cake and an enthusiastic, yet slightly out-of-tune birthday song.

After having envisioned reheated leftovers for lunch, had in front of Masterchef reruns on the tube, this could only be described as a dream. And all it took, for the day to turn out differently, was a little thoughtfulness, a generous spirit and some heart.

So it's true. Every once in a while, people will surprise you. They'll step out of that circle of expectation you've drawn around them, and extend beyond the roles you've confined them to, showing you a side to them, that you never knew existed. And in a world that's turning too fast to care, it's moments like these that you'll remember and hold dear, long after even they, have forgotten.