Time: The Past, Present, and Future

A bristling November 1st- abrasive winds sweeping easterly, sunset approaching; the sun providing nothing but light, vacating its heat faculty. High risers indeed, apartments offered at 380 per week, fully furnished- picturesque views at a premium. 

A plethora of distinctly shaped buildings, ranging from the rectangular JP Morgan to the hexagon-styled Credit Suisse, scattered protrusions all around. Face masks were becoming increasingly scarce, trench coats ubiquitous. A few scarves made an appearance too, perhaps prematurely. It wasn’t that cold after all.

Alas, an old friend approaching arm in arm with his girlfriend (assumptions allowed). A brief exchange followed by a warm smile and quickened steps. For a moment the uniformed days of secondary school resurfaced, more specifically the time shared on the Astro turf together. Muddy, wet, narrow pitches- the quintessential away day. Socks half-torn half-shrunken, football kit either oversized or as tight as a AFCON jersey, the coach journey back, full of banter and obscenities. How easy it was to reminisce, how easy it is to look ahead, and imagine where one could be decades later. 

The brisk weather was eternal in age, a recurring phenomenon consistent throughout one’s life, the skyscrapers and apartment lettings indicative of the adulting territory I’d entered, and a encounter with a school friend taking one back a decade. The past, present and future all highlighted within a 10 minute stroll; the elements, man’s creation, and man himself playing its part in this.