The Web of Experience

In November, I went to my 20-year high school reunion. It's really hard to believe it's been 20 years, but, well, it has. The bits I can remember were great fun. I drank way too much -- thanks to a few very generous people who kept refilling my beverage -- and as a result, parts of the two-day event are lost to me. I can say, though, that the parts I remember were fabulous. As a teenager, I was very self-conscious and not very self-assured. The intimidation I felt back then has vanished and it was very nice to experience my former classmates through confident, adult eyes. Most, if not all, have grown into pretty wonderful people and I truly enjoyed getting re-acquainted. I did not attend my ten-year, so this was a very special event for me -- and I highly recommend the experience.


I attended a small private school in Albany, Georgia, because my brother told my parents that I was just too delicate to go to the public high school at the time. That particular school system was one of the last to be desegregated in the nation and there was a lot of tension in the halls. So, off I went to a school where most kids attended to get away from the black folks. I'd like to think that isn't the reason I went, because that certainly doesn't reflect the person I am today. In any event, black students began enrolling in that school, too, by my senior year, and I hope they enjoyed their experiences there.

There were just 44 graduates in my class of 1985, so we all knew each other fairly well. In fact, a couple people from my class are still among my closest friends. But, I hadn't seen the vast majority of former classmates in 20 years. About half showed for the reunion, and all but a couple brought their spouses. Len did not attend with me, which probably contributed to my nervousness, and to my need to drink the entire bar.

We talked, we danced, we had a ball.

In the days and weeks that followed the reunion, I felt this sort of euphoria from having reconnected with my past. Part of me really wanted to go back to those days and relive the experience, only this time with my adult confidence. I felt like I missed out on the opportunity to know some pretty wonderful people and yearned to get a second chance.

But, alas, you can't go back. I'll see them again in 5, 10, or 15 years, and that will do. In the meantime, I've got a wonderful life -- better than most, in fact -- and I look forward to living it with my family and friends around me. Life is full of layers, and school is simply one of those layers. Family, friends, career, travel, heartache, and joy: That's life.