It was really wonderful to see old friends the other night. I was sorry I couldn't see more of them. Several people went to the Friday night function instead of the Saturday night but I was unable to get into town on Friday night, so I missed them.
Most everyone looked the same. At least recognizable. The memory fails you on the names, but the faces you recognized.
You recognized them, but they were changed. You could see not wrinkles, but wisdom. Eyes that saw a different future than that of 25 years ago. Eyes that had seen a lot in the last 25 years.
Some of our classmates are ill. You could see the worry lurking behind their eyes. Others are sending their children off to college or into the world. A little apprehension, maybe, creeps into their faces when they think about the unknown.
We've almost all lost loved ones. There have been divorces and new loves. We've had classmates serve in war. We have ministers and moms, professionals and those who are still finding their way, police officers, doctors, photographers and almost everything else in between.
And it shows on our faces.
It takes a little longer to "fix" the face maybe. Might be touching up the gray on the temples. Might be doing a lot of things to make the progression of time a little less obvious. The faces are a little more tired than the ones in the 1984 yearbook.
But the eyes are hard to hide and that is where I saw the most change. All of our eyes teared a little when the slide show played. Some were tears of laughter and others sadness at the classmates already passed.
But all-in-all, a good weekend. A time for reconnection. A time for stories and sharing. A chance to realize that you aren't the only one going through something.
You have a friend.
Many friends!
I hope that we can take what we gained this weekend and run with it. Up to and past the 30th reunion.
In 1984 we had the whole world in front of us and time was just an abstract concept. Not so much any more. Time and its passage have taken on a whole new meaning.
Make the most of it. Don't waste a second!
And if you didn't make this reunion, try really hard for the next one. It was worth every second.
And none of know how many seconds we have left.
Thank you Deanne for such beautiful phrasing. I very muc regret not being able to attend. I loved re-meeting old friends at our 20th & had ohso looked forward to our 25th. But, it simply was not to be. If I am still breathing, I will be at our 30th...it means a lot to reconnect. Having lived all over the country now & not in AR for 16 years now, that "reconnect" means a lot. It is acknowledging 'roots'.
ReplyDeleteThanks for describing it so poetically. I wish I could have been there to reconnect with old friends. Thanks, too, for the pictures on FB.
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