This Felix, That Felix and The Other Felix?

It has been a weird day.

After what happened with my eye this afternoon, I got another "amusing" experience when I was about to visit Felix, my ex-student.
I haven't met him for the longest time. The last time I taught him was probably in 2001, when I started to work for CDU. He was in the third grade of Junior High School then, and even then he already changed so much from the first time I met him two years before.

Felix was a fine boy. He was shy at first, but lately I learnt that he was naturally playful. He was crazy about football and he brought his ball wherever he went. Even at the time we were having our lesson, his feet would always continously kick the ball. I can recall those times when I stole the ball from him and had it under my feet to force him to concentrate. Then I was still taller than him.

He grew up so fast, his height rapidly advanced over me. And he kept measuring our bodies. In almost no time he got much taller than I was. Though it also happenned to my other teenager students, it was always a surprising miracle to witness a little boy transforming into an almost grown-up man.

I stopped teaching him because I got too busy with CDU. I often had to work overtime so I had not much time left for my private students.

A few days ago I was cleaning up my drawer and found my old address book. There printed some old familiar (or even unfamiliar) names of acquintances and students. I spent my afternoon to call them one by one, including Felix.

He guessed it right when he heard my voice. He told me he had been trying to contact me but I was always not at home. I was sorry for that but I just couldn't help it. We set up a meeting today.. We previously planned to meet up at the mall, but then his mom called me and said that she wanted to see me, too.. so I offered to go to their house, instead.

I was early. I thought I still remembered the way to his house, but apparently I took the wrong turn. I turned on the first road and checked out the houses on the right. It was pretty different, I thought. And I had no idea if his family reconstructed their house of not. Foolishly, I was too confident that I remembered his house without bringing his complete address. I finally found a house, which looked like his old house. And instead of going through the house with the white fence gate as I used to do, I knocked on the lock of the gate.

An old man appeared before the doorstep and asked whom I was looking for.

"Felix," I said, "Is he home?" while wondering how time made Felix' father look so old. I didn't wear my eyeglasses, as I haven't fixed them yet, but I could tell that he was much older than when I used to teach Felix.

The man came inside and called Felix.

A little bit overweight boy ran jumpingly towards the gate and said, "Yes?"

"Hi Felix!!! Long time no see!" I blurted out without checking him out.

"Err... who are you?" he said in his confusement.

"How dare you not to remember me. It's Carl..." I stopped when I finally got to see the boy's face through the dimly lighted porch. Oh God, he looked so young, I thought. Didn't he grow up at all? And what's this pretending not knowing me???

"Are you Felix?" I asked.

"Yes."

"From Petra University?"

"No, I'm still in Junior High."

G R E A T !

Wrong guy.

How the hell I could be missing Felix' real house, in a house so similar like his own, with a boy named Felix, too?!?!?!

The boy kindly gave me an alternative of another Felix in the same neighbourhood. But soon I found out that he was not the Felix I meant since he still sits in the Senior High School.
His mother and father got out of the house and asked what happened.

I, feeling shamed, explained that I might come accross the wrong house, which happened to have a boy with the same Felix name.

They symphatized and offered me to borrow their phone. (Which was good, cause I was running out of fund on my cell) I accepted the offer and got in their house. I called the real Felix (thanks God I saved his number on my mobile!) and his maid explained that Felix' house was on the next street. She gave me the full address and the couple helped me give the direction.

It was absolutely shameful, though funny, cause I kept laughing at myself when I was on my way to Felix' house.

The good thing from it was this Felix' parents were interested after they knew that I taught English privately. They asked my number before I left and I thought,
"Maybe it was the way it meant to be. I could be having a prospective student now"

*smile smile*