Slam Books

We had no Facebook but we had slam books (or known to others as autograph books).

In one corner of the room are my bags not in use. Since the Holy Week break, I've been thinking of giving those poor bags away to the needy but I didn't find time to do such. Thank heavens for the Labor Day, it was the perfect day to do it. I placed them inside an old canvass bag and asked my Mom to check it (baka may magustuhan sya, sayang nga naman).

Voila! Clearer, cleaner and bigger space remained. As I continued dusting my trolley box, I looked back on things and reminded my self why I was keeping them. Brand tags, movie tickets, receipts, pens, keychains and little trinkets. I inspected them one by one. Some were oddly kept in tumblers and containers of different sizes. I threw away the other stuff I'd no longer use like notebooks from high school and photocopies of lessons I thought I would be using in college. Old resumes for summer jobs and trainings, internship and workshops, torn brown envelops (I can't remember why I kept them)--I put these in the trash bin.

In the end, the bin weighed heavier than four kilos. The only things remained in my trolley box are the things I'm sure I'd keep forever, like slam books.

Slam books.

You're a certified 90's child if once in your life you got addicted to these special notebooks. During the last few weeks of the school year, these notebooks were passed around the classroom. I got so hooked in slam books I even found myself buying every quarter and had the same people sign those over and over again!

Some of my favorite items in my slam books are: (1) Friends. It's always cool to find your name written by a classmate even if you're not from the same "group". You'll gain a number of friends when you own the slam book (AGREE?). (2) Motto. I gathered all the motto and wrote them in a separate notebook. I found them so inspiring! Maaga ako na-inspire sa buhay. :) (3) Describe yourself. Honestly, I banned those who answered JUDGE ME or JUDGE MEEEH! Haha! (4) Define love. The ordinary ones answered, "Love is blind." (See item 2, TIME IS GOLD). As a kid, my favorite was "Love is like a rosary, full of mystery." Applicable until now.  Lastly, (5) Dedication. It's the heart of the message. While some wrote "Thanks for letting me sign here." and end the message with J-A-P-A-N, and others composed a message with their photos pasted on the small box as "required", the most striking and touching part for me is to be called Yanyan.

Before the nick Yannie, I was called Yanyan. And only a few can call me Yanyan sweetly and perfectly. On the day I reread the letters, dedications and messages for me, I felt so important to these people--the people who have seen me grow, who saw me in my siete haircut with full bangs, a la bulldog cheeks and crooked teeth and still called me beautiful. And caring. And cheerful. As we grew taller and more mature, the nick Yanyan has turned into Mar and/or Yan, yet nothing's changed. They are still the few ones who once called me Yanyan.

And no, these friends did not end their messages with J-A-P-A-N, but with FRIENDS FOREVER.

We are still friends up to this very moment, and we are keeping our words to be forever friends together with my slam books.

♥,

Marianne