Over 20 years

One of the highlights of this past year was my 20-year high school reunion. It's amazing to me just how significant those four years of high school are in a person's life.  It's been over 25 years since I first walked the halls of that old stately school, yet as soon as my fellow classmates and I gathered together that weekend, it was as if graduation had occurred only yesterday. I felt like an energetic, hyper teenager all weekend long.  Staying in my old room at my parents' house and having them take care of the kids (and me) that weekend helped too.

I'm sorry I missed the Friday events which included attending a game at our old football stadium followed by more socializing at Mellow Mushroom. A photographer was hired to take pictures at all the events, so based on the photos from the pro's CD, Friday night was a blast.

We got into town on Saturday just in time for the family picnic at city park. Our kids loved the carousel.  I remember when that antique carousel was restored way back during my middle (?) school years.  The mother of a close friend (pictured below the in bottom left corner with her baby and me) directed that project and invested countless hours of labor into the carousel restoration.

This park is located across the street from our high school, and the wooded section of the park provided a great location for our high school cross country course.  So, revisiting this park brought back memories of the year when I went from running cross country only to qualify for a scholarship because my guidance counselor made me do it to developing a life long passion for running.

This park also offers a fun little train ride through the woods and around the park. I remember taking my husband on train rides at this park when we first met back in 1992.  Our kids loved the train, too.  Our daughter treated one of my best friends from middle school (a high profile jetsetter residing in NYC) to a train ride, and I enjoyed watching my daughter chat with her much like I did back in middle school. 

After the picnic, several current student leaders at our old high school gave us a tour of the old school.  It hasn't changed much at all in 25 years.  It still smells musty and rank.  The paint is still peeling off the walls.  The lockers are still grungy but go mostly unused now.  The cafeteria got a major facelift, however, and now looks like a 50s diner with a modern twist.  Plasma screens keep the students entertained while also providing menu options.  Booth seating and chrome abound.  Soda machines have been replaced with much healthier water bottle dispensers.  Our high school principal, who moved on to bigger and better career opportunities after both of his sons and our class graduated from this school, sent us a message of remembrance from our years at the school. Having his message read to us before the tour was a nice touch!

Photos at top left and in the middle row provided by "Moments Captured"

The photo at the top left corner of my daughter raising her shirt in the air amuses me. Our hippy daughter is crazy about tie dye clothing, and I begged her not to bring that shirt, but alas, she did and the shirt showed up on the pro's photo CD.

A dinner party was held that evening with music, dancing, door prizes, and lots of talking and laughing!

My husband and I do not do enough much dancing, but I cannot resist some of the popular line dances from the 80s and 90s.  So, when I heard the words, "It's electric", I pulled my respectable husband out to the dance floor for the Electric Slide.  He was the only guy out there, and other gals were giving me high fives and saying "Woot!" because I brought him to the dance floor.  God bless this wonderful man for putting up with me and all these reunion festivities and for always being such a great sport.  Thankfully, the photographer captured his good "sportsmanship" with her camera (see photo at bottom right below).

Photos on bottom row of check-in and dancing by "Moments Captured"

For those who read our "love story" series, "Curly" is pictured in the top photo above (far left) with his beautiful wife who is expecting their third child.  Were it not for our student body president, "Curly", I would have never met my beloved husband.

The photographer brought some fun props for photos.  We especially enjoyed the boxing gloves since I've always thought my husband is a "knockout".  The photos on the CD of my classmates all dressed up in some of her gear are hysterical.  We had such a fun class. Thanks for all the wonderful memories, Class of '91.

Photos by Moments Captured

Curly and I would occasionally visit rest homes during our high school days.  I would play the piano while he led the residents in singing hymns, Christmas carols, or whatever classics from the early 1900s they would request.  We would also perform touching songs for them.  I remember presenting Michael W. Smith's song, "Friends" a number of times.  That song seems like a perfect ending to this blog post about reuniting with some forever friends.