lament for a friend

So the cat is finally out of the bag; most of my classmates ultimately knew about Hyree's impending return to Malaysia and the circumstances which lead to this turn of events.

I can only imagine how difficult it is for him to muster enough courage and calmness to tell the rest of us about it; indeed there is a certain amount of coolness in his tone of voice, a non-chalant expression upon his face, an uneasy gesture of his body, all of which seemed to conceal a deeper, more profound sense of dissapoinment and regret within him.

Indeed, the seemingly laidback nature through which the news was conveyed to my ex-classmates struck some of them to be highly unnatural and that took them completely by surprise.

For some of them, the casual nature through which the annoucement was made did not befit the emotional gravity or weight of the news; I guess they were expecting a thorough, a slightly drawn-out and solemn account of his predicaments - something which a few lines of text messages will never do justice.

Personally, I do not ask for anything than that from Hyree; that is not to imply any serious shortcomings on his behalf. But I felt that that is how Hyree normally deals with stuffs of this nature - he have this urgent desire to get such things done and over with as quickly as normal courtesy allows.

I mean, he can and will beat himself over the situation if he wished too but I guess at one point, he realized that there are other more pressing and practical repercussions which needs to be taken care of.

I think one needs to realized that worrying and drowning yourself in self-pity does not really provide you with the much needed comfort one normally needs in such situations; it may keep your mind occupied but it does not really get you anywhere.

Therefore, it is better for one to focus on other practical matters which one could pursue, other opportunities which might be available to one; it is better for one to work on something more 'substantial' and would deliver results which could effectively boost one's morale.

That is not to say that it is not proper at all for one to exhibit any emotional response to the situation, but I guess one need not lose one's head and always be aware of the limits of doing so.

Keeping a cool head and maintaining your perspective are crucial to ensure that you will be able to rough the storm safely.

Of course, to expect that you will escape it unharmed or unscathed is highly idealistic; but when everything around you seemed to fall apart, the last thing you want to happen is to fall apart yourself.

After all, human character, self-esteem and reputation are fragile things; once broken, it may be some time before it becomes whole again - if ever that is.

Thus, as offended as some of us might be to receive the news about Hyree's predicament on such a short notice, we need to realize that in such situations, one's own well-being takes far greater precedence over the well-being of others.

For once, being 'selfish' is not a question of giving oneself an edge over the others, but rather a question of one's survival and sustainability.