Marilyn has been a true friend to me over the years. She is one of those friends who is with you in the good times and is always by your side when the times are bad. She has an excellent sense of humour that makes everyone feel at home. It was quite sometime that we hadn’t met and finally when we did, we chitchatted for a hours together. After a while she asked me about my job. The moment the question popped up I spoke non-stop (am sure she wished she had never asked). I was having a stressful week at my job and I was telling her all the issues and how low I was feeling at the moment. She listened quietly to me as I was raved on about my frustrations. Without saying a word, she took her hands and placed them on my face, and said, “But at least you had a day.” The touch of her hands on my cheeks, the calmness in her voice and the words she spoke, hit me instantly. All the stress that was building up inside came to a stop. Since then, whenever I feel stressed, I remind myself of Marilyn’s words. I have promised myself not to waste my days on stress as life is too short.

— Sujeena Shakya, Class X, Little Angels School