During this time only, we discovered one very significant similarity between us amidst so many differences - that we share our birthday! Yes, and as luck would have it, our training was getting over just one day before our birthday, and both of us got our tickets to our respective places on our birthday itself. Sarah's flight was early in the morning, and mine was in the afternoon on the 19th of June'1995 - our 20th birthday! From 4-5 days prior to our birthday, I started receiving gifts, cards, flower bouquet, chocolates etc from my firends, relatives, etc. Our room looked like a little gift shop with so many packed gifts and flower bouquets around. She would be so excited to see them. And she would decorate our room with those received gifts -only my side of the room. Her side was empty. I made a note of buying a gift for her for her birthday. But the training got stricter and absolutely left us with no time to go out for shopping or anything else for that matter. Then I decided, that I would give her something from what I have received in all those days. But each and every gift was special to me. So I couldnt make up my mind as to which gift of mine I could part with and give it to her. Everyday, I promised myself, that next day I would decide on which gift to give her from the ones I had received.

On the last day of our training, ie, on 18th June she received a package. It was a gift from her mother on her birthday! She was escatic! That gift made her so special, her eyes spoke again, and this time with tears of happiness rolling down her cheek! I was very very happy for her. And amidst that happiness, I absolutely forgot to give her a gift from my side, which I was procastinating for long.

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