1980 doesn't seem like that long ago until I look at a calendar. Only then do I realize that 30 years have stroked by with a lot of changes in between the senior moments of the class of 1980 and the senior moments of wondering where in the heck I've left my glasses... only to discover them on top of my head.
Looking at my yearbook from then, I see the men and women to be with their eyes pointed to an uncertain future with the certitude of youth guiding them to what they believe will be a life flush with success. Untempered and untried by the challenges of adult life beyond the confines and protections of home, we all anxiously spread our wings and, like the eagle chicks we all were, took to the skies in search of our own futures.
Each of us had designs and plans that would lead us to experiences which would shape who we have become in the 30 years that filled the gap between 1980 and 2010. There were flashes of brilliance in the golden rays of the sun-filled sky of achievement and lowering clouds of despair for those failings that sometimes haunt our memories even now.
Life shapes us all. The rough edges of inexperience are honed by the sharp winds of adversity and trials through which only the passage of time can tutor our souls. Our dreams of what we'll be when we grow up turn into a steely resolve to be more than just the sum of our parts and our educational opportunity. Some marry. Some don't. Some make it a habit.
Children come to willing and not so willing parents. And some who yearn for children never have them at all. Wrinkles appear for most, but not all. Weight changes, hair grays and laugh lines deepen as our life's experiences create from the smooth canvas of our youth a portrait of the aging adult who depends upon God more than the smiling face in the yearbook ever did.
Some have seen the world from well traveled jobs. Others have seen in through the sights of a gun. Some have held the hand of a parent who has been called home just when we have begun to appreciate their counsel and advice, and their friendship.
Students of yesterday have become the caregivers of today. Parents age and needs shift from all-powerful, all-knowing bulwark of strength to frail and forgetful shells of what once was.
The sand in the hourglass shift for some and leave a visible reminder of time spent on the earth fighting a losing battle with DNA and human genetics that are not always playing fair.
But inside the concerned and sometimes bewildered adult of today beats the heart of the teenager who cruised the Square and enjoyed a milkshake at Limestone Drug with a group of friends that have never left our hearts even if life carried them to a distance point on the map.
Those same teenage hearts have carried us through the times when we laughed in giddy remembrance over shared humor that only got better with time, cried for those who are either no longer with us or whose life circumstances have been less than ideal. Our hearts have rejoiced for the lost that are found and for those who finally got a clue, even if that one was ourself.
We recall the smoke breaks, the ice storms, the grape Jell-O in the cafeteria and the endless repetition of the band music that had to be absolutely perfect before Friday night. Our minds wander back to the ballgames, the touchdowns and the girls who yelled themselves hoarse to encourage the fans to cheer for the Golden Eagles in good times and bad.
Memories are a powerful thing. They send us in a time warp back to when 'our music' was cool, not dated or played in the dentist office. Our momentary flashes of the past remind us of that "one" in class who made the heart beat just a bit faster...
Then, graduation came. We had worked for it, we had longed for it, and now that it was finally here, some of us actually cried. Diploma in hand, we left the hallowed halls with their striped carpeting for a world painted in kaleidoscopic hues.
Now, we can gather and renew friendships, embrace the new people we have all become and remember the foundation upon which this opportunity was built.
It's kind of funny, it doesn't seem like it's been thirty years... until I look in the mirror. Then I realize that girl of yesterday grew up, kept the memories she could and built a life that hopefully has faith, endurance, and meaning beyond self.
Maybe that is the real reason we have reunions. So we can take the things we remember of our past together and say "This is what I have done with my life since then - please approve of me and what I have become."
Reunion.
