Since arriving in Auckland I have racked up a total of 12 flatmates including:
- 1 vegan
- 2 Irish people
- 1 homosexual
- 2 Americans
- 1 thief
- 10 girls
- 2 boys
- 1 practicing Christian
- 1 Indian
- 1 sociologist
- 1 person who I went to high school with
- 11 people I had never met before in my life
- Too many Friends fans
- Not enough drum and bass fans
What is more amazing than anything that they do, or where they are from, their religion, sexual persuasion, or taste in music is that I now count almost all of them (just a couple of notable exceptions) among my friends, some of them among my best friends.
How is it that in general day to day life I seem to rarely meet people that I want to spend more than 5 minutes with but in the past three years eleven random, diverse people have almost all become my friends?
Of course the reason I have been thinking about this is that this week another flatmate is being added to the growing list of those who have left for far off lands. One that has become one of my closest friends. Another trip to the Auckland International Airport. Another good-bye dinner. Another round of big hugs, teary eyes, and somber drives back home.
So, bon voyage Tui. I know that we will always be great friends.
