Thoughts on a High School Class Reunion

I was privileged to be able to attend my 50th high school class reunion – Chino High School, Chino, CA, class of 1961 (the one year where our class rings could be turned either way and the year still reads the same). Everybody seemed to recognize me (no one else in my class was any shorter) but I seemed to need the name tags to put the names with the faces. Most of us have aged (with a few exceptions), but what should one expect after 50 years. We were a class of 204 in 1961 – we have lost 42 of our classmates. To hear of some of their tragic deaths made me very sad – murder, suicide, traffic accidents, cancer, heart disease, stroke, and more – and even more sad especially for those deaths that would not be considered ‘natural’ causes. The number of classmates who chose not to join us also made me sad. Some of us did not feel very much a part of the whole in 1961, but in 2011 we were all one whole, enjoying each other’s company even though we had been apart for so very many years. All of the petty stuff of the teenage years was gone. An afternoon social hour, a dinner and more socializing, and a late morning brunch at our class president’s home made the weekend very special.

Going home after so many years where there is no home to go to and no family in the area is a tough one. I decided to spend some time with a former neighbor. We had tea together. Her son and wife joined us (I babysat for him when he was a little kid). We had lunch together. We reminisced and talked of everything – family, friends, church, school, neighbors and anything else we could think of. This visit really helped bridge the lack of family as we had so many friends in common. I can never catch up with the last 50 years that I have been away, but I do know a little more about old friends than I did before I made the trip.

Again, I spent a little time driving around the area, trying to find old haunts, homes, and landmarks. As with everyplace, this little place in the sun has definitely changed – a LOT – since 1961. It has even changed a lot since my parents passed away and changed since I was home in 2001 for my 40th HS reunion. Life was simpler 50 years ago. People weren’t in such a hurry. We took more time to just be with friends and visit. Everyone has someplace to go and something to do today and there is no time for just ‘being’. My few days at ‘home’ gave me some for just ‘being’ – being with friends, renewing old acquaintances, and just relaxing without the daily pressures of my convoluted life.

Thank you to all my classmates who joined us for a great weekend. Thank you to my friends who made time for me to just visit and relax and be with them and catch up on everything. Thank you to my husband who again let me go and ‘be’. There are plans for another reunion – perhaps earlier than five years. I don’t know whether I will go or not, but I do know this 50th reunion will be a very good memory for a very long time.