It was easier being a child, living in a cocoon of ignorant bliss. There was no worry or insecurities or any anxieties over your every action or word. No fear of the consequences, or underlying implications. We lived simply the way we were. A joyous existence that did not go beyond the surface.

In Asian Management Systems, we're learning about the relationship network model; where people congregate in networks and one network and another tends to have gaps that are bridged by one individual or more. In the case of only one bridge between two networks, the person who serves as the bridge becomes a crucial figure as he/she controls all information transfer between the two networks. Information transfer thus becomes subject to the individual's selection criteria and his/her bias towards transferring information.

I find myself caught in the situation above. I know that he is a good person. Yes, he has invested a lot in her. He has given (almost) his all in his bid to win her eventhough she has never promised him anything. Over the past few months, I've grown used to having him share his idealistic dreams of a life together with her; it was with a heaviness in my heart that I listened to the usually verbose him pour his heart out punctuated with regular silences.

Knowing what I know, I was so tempted to slap some sense into him by speaking the absolute blunt truth but as a friend, I knew that there were some things that were just better left unsaid. Even so, I failed as a friend. All he wanted was for me to be a girl and let him bitch but I chose to be "a guy" in this situation by giving him rational advice, thereby, taking away his opportunity to work up an emotional storm and have a good cry later on.

Still, I can only hope that I did make him feel better. She means so much to me and I love her. But over these recent months, he's started to occupy a tiny place in my heart as well. While she'd always come first with me, it still pains me to see him hurt.

Sometimes, ignorance truly is bliss. The world is as you perceive it to be. Nothing goes wrong and all is an idealistic dream.