Life and Its Many Turns

I received a phone call from Adeline’s mum this morning. I was shocked. No, Adeline is not dead… she might not be the same person that I used to know and now she’s living in solitude, not wanting to have any contact with friends or family. The reason why she hasn’t deleted mine because my husband and I haven’t make the effort to pick up our wedding gift which she couriered to her mum’s place a year ago.

I knew Adeline during my university days; we were classmates. Not many people like her, as she is very opinionated, very petty and arrogant. So, it was understandable if most of my Malaysian classmates were trying their best to avoid her. I didn’t think her as scary as what other people might describe her; they just can’t accept that Adeline is a bit different. I always found her as one of the most helpful and cheerful person, prone to buy branded stuff and love to travel. She stayed with me for couple of months before I left New Zealand for good. We even went to Waiheke Island for sun bathe which unfortunate for me because my skin is not prone to tanning.

I think things started to change when she broke up with her Taiwanese boyfriend of two or three years. She loved him so much that it affects her a little. Adeline is a Buddhist and that event has made her becoming more pious. A year later, she has becoming a vegan. When we last met her, she said she never want to get married and think of the possibility to become a Buddhist nun, which by then, I never thought she really means it.

So when I received that phone call, I went blank.

Adeline’s mum confirmed that she has left for Taiwan to study Buddhism; Adeline has made it clear to her mum during her short stint in June. She deleted all her friends’ contacts so that she can concentrate on her study. The only setback is that she has not contacted her mum since she left and there is no way the mother can contact her as she never leave any numbers or her whereabouts. Her mum is worry about her and it’s heart breaking to see her only daughter treating her like that.

I have nothing against her religion and the path she has chosen but I feel sorry for her mum. She single-handedly raised Adeline and her brother. Her dreams are to have many grandchildren and live happily with all of them. Unfortunately, I could see one of her dreams has shattered.