Devika looked magnificent in a striped dusky pink coloured dress, with a type of frosted (translucent) pink necklace setting nicely against her collar bone. She looked summery and happy. Any of the potential shyness I might have felt after not seeing her for the better part of a decade quickly vanished when she exultantly welcomed me to her parents' home by shouting my full name and throwing her arms around me by way of a greeting.

It was in that moment that I also understood the power of letters. Through out mutual faithfulness to postal mail, she knows about every important thing in my life, and I hers. And that has created a bond between us that is powerful enough to make it seem that I had seen her last rather recently.

I had not yet met her El Mono, and that seemed wrong to me, so this party was important for even more than just seeing her again. Regrettably,anytime she has been in the state of Maryland over the course of the last fewyears, we have been unable to connect at all; I also needed to be there to show her that I intended to delight in the truly important moments of her life, with her.

Thank you, Devika, for continuing to count me among the number of people you call friends.