Dear Maria,
Hola, Como Estas? It is almost 23 years after this postcard reached me in Malaysia. I was rummaging through my personal belongings last week and i found this postcard alongside other old photos and that's when my mind started playing the old tune of the Wham's " Wake me Up before you go go".. So i decided to write to you as i was informed by your sister that you are now married and settling down in Panama with your family. I hope you have nothing to do with the Noriega's family and i wish you a very good health and a wonderful life. I am not sure whether I had replied to this post
card then but let's assume i did. Damn if I didn't...
Dear Maria,,
i am writing this as a reminder to myself that i was once a young chico living and studying in America similar to your dream and ambition. The life then was very simple and full of fun and joy. Unfortunately, you didn't stay long enough in the United States because you left for Mexico right after your English course. Before I met you, the "Maria" i knew was Maria Arshad (Malaysia actress in the 80's) and the Black Maria of Pudu Jail, the black van that was used to carry criminals to the court and back from Pudu jail. If people ask me, "hey, what about Maria Carey? she's also popular.." My straight answer is that Maria Carey did not exist yet then and perhaps she was still singing in some cheap pubs somewhere in the southern states, if my knowledge about her is correct.
Dear Maria,
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| not Maria, but Loreena.. |
The first time i set my eyes on you in the late 1985, you were just arriving from Mexico to learn English at the Utah State University. Instinctively, when i met senorita es bonita like you, my Spanish came alive and i was eager to practise my Spanish lingo. And with you, I thought i could practise my spanish that i learned in my previous university. It was a good fun with my limited spanish when i visited Tijuana and Juarez during the school breaks before. Unfortunately, the language that gave me so much joy is going down the drain..
Dear Maria,
In 1988, i was just starting my career as a trainee executive in one of the global insurance company in Malaysia. I remember that you sent me many postcards from exotic parts of Mexico and i like what i saw in Mazatlan but perhaps because of my ignorance, we lost contacts with each other after i moved out from the Kg Bary address (as how you always wrote it). Just imagine, I used to live next to the house belonging to the mother of one of the richest people in Malaysia but too bad, i didn't get to share his wealth, thus i remained a poor young executive then.
Dear Maria,
Do you still remember Lhong**, your English course mate from Thailand? He didn't talk to me for quite sometime after he discovered that i was going out with you . I didn't know that he got a big crush on you. He came to me saying something which i could hardly understand but sufficient enough to know that he was not happy with me because of our relationship. This issue could have caused an international incident and no wonder until now, the level of trust between Thailand and Malaysia is still at a very low level, perhaps sparking from this incident 25 years ago, 1-0, Malaysia over Thailand , oops..!!
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| Our three angels |
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| crazy Japanese in front. "madonna" in blue blouse.. |
And do you still remember all the parties that we used to attend especially the ones hosted by the South Americans? The South Americans gave new definition to partying in the conservative Mormon state of Utah. I wonder if you still remember the rest of the crazy guys in Logan..Thiep, Katsutaka, Hiroshi, Jasmin, Lisa & Mike, Lorena, and the rest of the gangs.. But things have changed with time. Now, we can only look back and reminisce our good old days, the young and healthy college kids who happened to be in a foreign land and shared the same idea of studying, partying and staying happy with the hope to graduate with a degree in hands.
Hasta Luego, Mi Amiga!
Regards,
Nick the "D"
* Disclaimer: This is just a semi fiction from the writer, no relation to anybody alive or death. Or it's up to you to believe....
** Name changed. He is a big shot in Thailand now.
