You know people celebrate or commemorate Anniversaries.
I mean a birthday party is a celebration of an anniversary. And the placement of a little ad in the papers on a Loved One's Death Anniversary is a remembrance of what is missed in that person. Then there are Wedding Anniversaries and Nationhood Anniversaries and anniversaries that commemorate some significant event or another through the passage of time.
Some people create their own anniversaries. The little stupid things they want to remember that is nonsense to everyone else but means a whole lot to them. There may not be a celebration or commemoration
per se but still the memory of the dates' seemingly silly significance lingers. When you first kissed your girlfriend. When your much-loved pet died. Your first paycheck. The day you bought your 1st car. Your first day in National Service. The list is somewhat endless and very personal. Most bring a smile to your face. Others a tear or two.
The thing about Anniversaries is that whether or not they become etched in the long Time-line of Life depends on whether you want to remember the day or event. Then there are Anniversaries you would rather not think about or choose to forget, but keep coming back to haunt you year after year for some reason.
26 Aug 96 is one such bittersweet memory that brings both a smile and a tear. Come Sunday, it would have been 11 years to the day.
But come Sunday, things would be so different from the ten 26th of August's before...