My Shining Life!

Those of you who have me as a friend on FB, you would know that I just returned from an Osaka trip. Osaka is an amazing city, the shopping is fab and considerably cheaper as compared to Tokyo. They had H&M! That made shopping in Osaka orgasmic. *giggles*

This trip was the 2nd time I went on with friends. The 1st one being the trip to Bali for 4 days, also with 2 other friends - my absolute BFFs.

This trip, however, felt entirely different. 1st of all, it certainly was not fun. I can't begin to describe the emotions I felt during my Osaka trip. It's a mixture of good and bad stuff. Good being the place itself, the weather, the shopping. It would not go wrong with careful planning. I would recommend it more than Tokyo.

The bad being the company. It was the worst. The thing is I had not expected it cuz if I had, I would not had embarked on the trip in the 1st place.

And you know how it gets when you have bad company. It makes everything seem bad.

Even though I did not have a good time, I did learn many things during trip. My patience, for one, grew incredibly. To put up with someone rude and mean for 5 days is not an easy feat. And I am proud to say that I did it. Without even a word of complain. Though at one point I did show my displeasure for about an hour but I quickly got back my senses and tried to ease up the atmosphere. It was after all a holiday and I should not ruin it for everyone just cuz I was unhappy.

However, this notion was not shared by my fellow travelers. One particular friend made sure her every thought and emotion was heard and felt and if she didn't like what you said, she simply ignored you, even though she asked the question. This happened a lot during the trip and it got to one point, even if I knew the answer, I kept quiet. I don't deserve to be treated like shit and despite my trying to make it a pleasant trip for everyone, she was doing everything she can to make mine hell. She would get angry when I bought something she liked even when I saw it first. I did not mind if she got it too but she chose not to but to sulk about it. She would also get angry if I found stuff to buy and she didn't. @^#%*@$?!?

I went on the trip without knowing that the 2 of them were closer than I thought. If I had known, I would have most certainly grabbed one more friend along. But I thought since we are already on the trip together, we should do things for 3 persons, shop for 3 persons, eat for 3 persons, basically consider everything for 3 persons. But no, they stuck to each other like glue and most of the time, I felt like I was holidaying alone. At one point, we split up to do our own shopping and agreed to meet 1 hour later. When I met them 1 hour later, I realized they had been shopping together and I was the only one who shopped alone. At that point I had already accepted the fact that this was how the rest of the trip was going to be so I uttered nothing. All I wanted to do was shop and go home asap. I refrained from having a showdown with them since I thought it would be unfair to teach them a lesson amidst a holiday. But it took everything I had inside to restrain myself.

When I returned and saw my hubby at the airport and received heartwarming text messages from my friends to welcome me home, I felt better instantly. I could not be bothered with the 2 of them and realized how shallow and juvenile they were. They honestly deserve each other and I truly hope they remain best frenemies forever. (Frenemy definition: People who put others down to make themselves feel better.)

I am glad that at the end of something bad, I got something good out of it. I have already been a contented person before the trip but now, I am contented and grateful. That I have loyal friends, a loving husband and a wonderful family. They are the people who constantly inject positivity into my life and let me excel and shine in the small ways I can. Having been stuck with 2 very negative people who brought out the worst in me, not allowing me to be the best person I can be, made me realize how blessed I am.

The quantity of friends don't count, but the quality does. I would rather have 1 quality friend than many friends like them in my life. The shallow conversations are tiring.. give me a quiet dinner with good friends any day!

Today I am going to write a list of things that I am grateful for and read it every morning to remind myself how good it is to just be alive and living.

Thank you to all you friends who never hindered me in my endeavors and are truly happy for me and where I am today and lastly, having always allowed me to shine.. :)

**Special thanks Mel & Ben, Joanna & Simon for having me at their weddings! Even though it was immediately after my trip, it put me back in high spirits just being a part of your celebrations! :)