The Reluctant Reunionist (is that a word?)

I am a member of a mailing list, Mennolink, and have been for many years. Members of this list I consider friends, though I have never actually met any of them. Most of these listers are some of the most down-to-earth people I know, they'll tell you like it is. Anyway, one of my friends, Audrey Metz, wrote about her upcoming 50th class reunion. She had never been to a reunion, hadn't really intended to attend ANY reunion. But, she decided to go to this one. She wrote us a very nice long email concerning all this and her thoughts after the fact, but the part that really struck me was her conclusion. I have asked and received permission to share this on my blog.

"I have concluded that reunions are - yes, a fun time of reconnecting - but much more important, they are a way of coming together for healing, for changing memories. Because that's one of the things that happens: with all the laughter and hugs and memories shared, the common thread was a camaraderie that bound us together, reminding us that we are HERE NOW in a way that is different from before. We are here because we care enough about each other to show up. We are here because our lives were bound together way back when, whether we all liked and accepted each other then or not. And it has turned out OK! In fact, it has turned out really beautiful. We have replaced old memories with new ones that put everything else into perspective. And that perspective includes forgiveness - of each other and of ourselves."

Thank you, Audrey.

40th Class Reunion

Last night was my husband's 40 year class reunion. First thing was the lasagna dinner with salad, bread sticks and a creamy chicken and pasta mix. There was plenty to go around and plenty left to take home.



Next was to gather everyone from the class for a photo. Here's two that I took. All the while, playing in the background, was a two man '60s band, the husband of one of the classmates. They were quite good.


Hopefully I got everyone that was "hiding" in the second shot.





Then all the classmates were gathered into a large circle and were asked to tell either a funny story or something memorable about High School. It was fun to hear the stories as each took their turn around the circle. To hear others say, "That was you that did that?!" and "I got blamed for a lot of that stuff." There was one amusing story about a carload of girls driving through the cemetery at night and boys dropping from a tree over the road onto their roof. The girls telling how scared they were and spinning their tires in the dirt road to get out of there. There were many tales and many laughs before the night was over. I could have sat there all night and listened to their stories.



It all broke up around 11pm and everyone said "Goodbye" till next time.