Christmas sprinkles

Late last night I received a call from Valsha who was overcome with joy as she received the award of employee of the year at Solis. It has been one of her aims for several years and she worked hard towards that objective. In the heat of the moment, I was among a few persons she wanted to thank as her mentor. When I won the award back in 2011, she confided in me that this was something she wanted to emulate. We have not always seen eye to eye in the past but I always did my best to encourage her to forge ahead and not let people pull her down. Along the years, our relationship grew stronger and I am very proud of the person that she has become.

Valsha was Kersley's best friend and in 2008, despite our differences and opposite personalities, I decided to give  her the opportunity to integrate our team. She plugged in immediately and although we had our share of fights and conflicts, we learned to tame each other. A strong headed girl with a big personality (at times too rough), she nevertheless impressed everyone by her determination and directness. The fact that she had that shaky voice on the phone and tears in her eyes last night, moved me very much. Ash, mo ti envi remercier toi et partaze sa moment la avec toi. C'est grace a banes dimounes kouma toi kine pousse moi, encouraz moi ki mone gagne sa prix la zordi. To meme ti mo guide. Nou kapav in ggn banes moments de desaccord mais zame to pane laisse mwa tomber et to fine touletemps donne moi bon conseils. Merci, merci bokou Ash.


The other good surprise of the month is Zulfi. We had a long talk at dinner about his future as he projects to get married. We talked not as the lovers that we used to be but as close friends that we are today. Zulfi entered my life in 2000 and never left it. A very special bond unites us, one which I had thought I would share with someone like Syed but it's funny how life teases you and shows you that, ultimately, you deserve better than what you had thought. We evoked his rebellious years when he was younger and wanted to free himself from the claws of his family, his struggles in finding himself, his quieter ways as he grew older and the fact that he now wants to settle down. From boy to man, 18 years in the making.


I love it when December comes with its load of xmas magic.