The 20th High School Reunion
I can't believe the time has come. We have been out of school some 20 years! Tonight is our class' 20-yr. high school class reunion. It took some chiding, along with some self-motivation, to bring it all together, but... in the end, the plans were finalized and the classmates came.
I had the best of hopes that I would make it tonight, but things happen, and I was unable to be there. It makes me very sad to imagine all my friends together, after all these years, having fun and catching up on their lives, without me there;( We grew up in a farm community, and a school where you knew everyone there. Over the past months, many of us reconnected through the social website, Facebook. We're all in contact and I think it will be that way for some time to come. We're just really good friends like that=)
As I sat here, wondering what my classmates were doing, if they were having fun and enjoying each other's company (which, I knew they were;), my phone rang. It was one of my friends from high school! She was at the reunion and wanted to fill me in... telling me who showed up, how "so-and-so" looked different (but, nice) and that they were all having a really great time! She wanted to know if I wanted to speak to anyone, in particular, at the reunion. It was tough to pick, so she did that for me;) She picked two very good friends I really do miss! I talked to the one who told me not to worry... that, she was taking tons of pictures and she would upload them to the website. We talked for a few minutes, then I talked to the other friend. This friend's voice seemed very different from what I recall, but she was still the same nice person she's always been! I felt soooooo much better getting off the phone with them. They made my night;)
A few of us are already starting to plan our 25th reunion=) It will be very nice to see everyone again. We have so many things in common, so many things to catch up on. Who would've thought, a class of less than 100 would turn out to be such good friends!? It wasn't always that way in high school. Like most schools, there were certain cliques... the popular ones, the nerds, the wild kids, the ones who got along with most everyone and the ones who marched to their own beat. It's amazing, really, how we've all grown, matured and changed, and... 20 years later, have been able to rediscover each other and become fast friends, as if we were always that way=) It's very exciting, to say the least!
I truly believe, our class (our school!) is one of the very best there is! I suppose, part of it has to do with growing up in such a close-knit community, too. There wasn't much lying, sneaking around and cutting class for us... for, we knew, things like that would undeniably get back to our folks. I remember several times being "caught" and my mom saying, "I keep tellin you, you're not getting away with anything. There are too many eyes paying attention." That IRKED me, back then. I was the defiant, stubborn teen who just knew it was my "right" to know who saw what;) Eventually, I learned... there is NO use doing things I shouldn't in this community. You WILL get caught!
Despite that fact, I am now very appreciative and thankful that those people did look after me and care about what I was doing. You don't see that it communities much anymore, and... it's sad. Kids need that supervision. I was blessed with wonderful parents, who had my best interests at heart; neighbors, friends and family who cared enough about me and my brother to steer us in the right direction; schools, staff and teachers who upheld the epitome of what good schools and a good education are all about. We were truly blessed!
I'm extremely proud of each and every one of my classmates. We've grown, we've changed, we've evolved, as human beings. Some of us went to college, others went into the military, and still, others chose trade school or work, right after high school. Some of us are white, some of us are black, some asian, some multiracial. Despite all of our differences, we all have much more in common, than not. We are true, and lasting, friends.
