Most of you may not know me…or you may
recognize me from the pictures on the slideshow…my name is Ruiyi Song and I’m one
of Sharon’s family friends. I first met Sharon when we were three. She was
holding her mother’s hand. I can still see her skipping towards me with a big
smile that showed all her baby teeth. From then, our childhood memories seemed
to revolve just around the three of us…Charles,
Sharon, and I. We were like a tiny version of the ever inseparable and loyal three musketeers. I remember we used to
jump off the sofa and scream the name of our favorite sailor moon character as
we struck a pose. I remember the pain of leaving each other when the day was
over. The three of us would get together and sing
“George, George, George of the
Jungle” hoping that…in some bizarre way…we could somehow annoy our parents in to letting us stay a
little longer. . I remember Christmas Eve being our favorite sleepover of the
year. We’d stalk out in front of the Christmas tree, determined to take shifts
and catch Santa Clause, maybe see Rudolph, only to fail and fall asleep before twelve anyways. It never occurred
to me until we stopped believing in Santa Clause that we were slowly growing
older together. Sharon and I lived in different cities and we had to accept the
fact that we had different friends. One summer she put together a Boredom Crew.
That’s how I met Spring, Yvonne,
and many others. We spent that summer writing newsletters to each other,
plotted evil plans to take over the world’s supply of sugar, had interesting
conversations that questioned our gender, and gave ourselves nicknames. Years
went by and she pursued her dream in becoming a doctor and never did I once
doubt her talents and abilities. There were
times when it did feel that the
mountains, high school stress, and the changes we made as we grew older was
testing our friendship. And there were days when we liked to think about our
childhood together. We looked on to school and finals, she’d sigh, press her
lips together and say in that smug Sharon way, “Ruiyi, I miss the good ol’ days.” And I would sigh and say, “I miss them too…” Yet we always managed to
meet whenever a weekend came by. We went around the world together. Our numbers
grew with every trip, but she was always there to share a moment where we would
sit and talk about life and our
future…we made a promise that we’d always stay in touch…so that someday…our kids could become life long
friends…just like us…I feel as if I know Sharon inside out, or at least the
inner child within her, because that’s who changed my life. I can’t imagine
what life would’ve been like if she wasn’t there.
It’s been twelve years since I first met
Sharon. Sometimes I take it for granted that a friend I met when we were only three could possibly still stay friends
when we turned fifteen. And our
little sisters…Susan and Rachel…I hope your friendship lasts forever. Susan…my heart goes out to you…you’ve lost
a wonderful sister…but know that you’ve gained many more siblings…and they are
sitting all around you.
Sharon or I should say…leng leng, her Chinese childhood nickname…this is not goodbye...how can I say goodbye when you’re still living inside me…I’ve spent an unforgettable twelve years with you…but I’m not planning to stop counting there…Even though no matter how many times I try and sing “George of the Jungle” it will not keep you here with us…I can proudly say that you were my best friend and that I love you because you were my first friend…They say love…is the only thing that time cannot touch, and time will never forget how you changed our lives in these fifteen years… thank you