I finally attended my first high school reunion a few years back for my 30th. I had tried to attend the ones previously but living far away something came up for my 5th, 10th, and 20th. The timing was uncanny so it took me a while to see where life had taken many of my classmates from so long ago. Outside of my close circle of friends and those I had reconnected with on Facebook I didn't know much about many of my classmates beyond these connections.
[Photo Credit: Wix Images]
Since I was unable to attend all of my reunions before my 30th I felt sad and curious about all those I had spent my formative years with crafting my hopes and dreams for the future. Since I left my hometown at 18 and never really lived there again with the exception of 2 summers I never had any chance encounters or the ability to join in on "girls nights out" over the years. The beaches (Rehoboth & Dewey Beach) were a big part of my growing up years and memories from my youthful past. They were both a place many of my best friends as well as past classmates continued to build memories with families as well as significant others long after graduation. I had left that behind living in PA, TN, FL & NC over the years. There was and still is a part of me that always feels a slight ache when I see vacation pictures from these two beloved beach spots in my home state.
It wasn't until Facebook( I joined in 2009) and the I-phone that I felt a renewed connections with my past and close friends. Letters, cards and phone calls were great but seeing kids grow up and life milestones on social media was a bridge to my past and connected us again in a way that was profound when you are the friend that lives far away.
However, when 2016 came around and it was time for our 30th nothing was going to keep me away. And it didn't. I was able to talk in person, hang out with those I was best friends with and discover connections with some classmates that had been in my periphery in high school and no doubt I was in theirs. Reunions are about revisiting the past , reliving old stories and taking a trip back in time but they are also about rediscovery of who you were and who you have become with everything that it encompasses.
None of us are the same whether it is our 5th, 10th or 30th. We evolve and change and that is why each reunion may be filled with the same people but nothing is the same and our interest in staying connected and sharing stories is innate to those we spent some of the most impressionable years with "back in the day"
Reunions are one of the few places that connect us with our past and present. It is a shared history ( whether we like the history or not) that we share with few people beyond our immediate family. It was the beginning of the canvas we started painting that became and continues to become our lives. No matter where each of us end up or what place we are in at each interval that we all come back together our starting place was the same and shaped who we became and what paths we did or didn't decide to take.
If you ever think you shouldn't or don't care to take a trip back in time and attend your reunion I would encourage you to rethink it. You never know who you may meet or rediscover no matter how far you have come or how much you have achieved. There is value there and you never know when it may be your last chance. So, CHEERS to reunions and I don't plan on missing any more of them if I can help it.
XO & #StayCurious
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