This was a weekend of deja vu that’s heading into a week of yet to come…
It’s strange to celebrate your 30th class reunion the same summer that you’re sending your baby off to college. But that’s just what is happening this week.
I am in the SeaTac airport as I write this, waiting the two hours until my plane takes me back home. But even that sounds strange as I have just spent the entire weekend with the friends and family that shaped my life in my formative years. None of us are old enough to celebrate a 30 year reunion (!) but somehow it happened anyway. These “kids” that I went to kindergarten with now have stories of grandkids and early retirement. More than once I heard the mention of menopause and blood pressure issues. Without a warning, all of us have reached “midlife” and have lived to tell the tales.
But there were those from our class that weren’t among us. Those that didn’t get to experience all that these wonderful “mid-years” offer. Drugs, accidents, suicide and disease robbed them of experiencing the bond we all experienced once again, a bond I think is unique to our North Thurston Class of ’82. We remembered and honored and missed them and wished that the seats we saved for them could be filled with the laughter that we remembered so well.
We ate and reminisced together. We laughed and even cried together. We replayed ridiculous antics and stories that separated our class from the rest, at least in our opinion. We remembered old teachers and either smiled or grimaced. Recalled those who got us through excruciating math classes and boring history lectures. We flipped through the pages of the history that all of us shared and knew that those pages and these people had impacted each of our lives profoundly.
The saying, “The older you get, the more so,” seemed to apply this weekend. The sweet ones were sweeter still. The brainiacs still retained their high IQs. The happy, happier. The classy, classier. But there were some who surprised me. Those that were horribly shy in high school who seemed to come out of their shell and find their voice with age. Others who had been awkward who seemed to come into their own. And of course, those who had struggled during high school and ended up conquering their fears and obstacles and becoming successful in life.
We celebrated life together when we were 14 by cheering at games, playing pranks, and pushing each other to work harder. We celebrated life this weekend at 48 with laughter, memories and hugs. The two didn’t seem very far apart on Saturday night…
But before even my classmates had an impact on me at age five and a half, there were others. My family. I got to spend time with each of my brothers and their families and my parents and in-laws. Those people who have loved me unconditionally and molded me into the whacky woman I am today. The interactions over the past few days have displayed both the similarities and differences among us that help us sharpen and grow each other. The beautiful hearts and souls that I have had the privilege of calling “kin” have encouraged my endeavors and endured my idiosyncrasies which has given me the courage to spread my wings and try to fly. And for that I am eternally grateful.
As I get ready to get on the plane to Denver it hits me. Am I going home or am I leaving home? And I guess if the saying “home is where the heart is” is true, then both are correct. My past resides in a small Northwest town. But my present is in Parker where my husband and two of my grown kids live. These are the people who continue to love and shape and mold me as a person. My heart is in both places. And where will my future call home? It has yet to be determined. But wherever it is, there will love expressed and memories made that will add to the story that is my life.
In three days, my son Blake will begin this journey that I have just celebrated. He is embarking on his future as a student and a man. And 30 years from now, I hope and pray that he has his own wonderful memories, the truest of love and the best of friends that will mark the path into the amazing future ahead of him. I love you, Bud…
