20th High School Class Reunion
My 20th high school class reunion was a couple of weeks ago. I flew back to Michigan to attend it and visit my family. Visiting the family is always enjoyable (true!). And I’m really glad to say that I had a lot more fun at the reunion than I was expecting…
I grew up in a small farming village in Southeastern Michigan called Onsted, just south of Ann Arbor. There were about 600 people in the village limits at the time, and I think that today the number isn’t much higher than maybe 700 or 800. Nowadays, there’s even a very tiny “supermarket”. More like an “enhanced bodega” on the north side of town, but even that is a huge step up. The closest supermarket would otherwise be about 15 miles away.
Anyway, for such a small town, we actually had a large school district covering many of the nearby lakes. Altogether, there were about 110 kids in my graduating class. My brother’s class had 150 kids and put a big strain on the school at the time.
Well, this was our first reunion for the class of ‘87 in about 10 years. We skipped the 15. Thankfully, a guy in our class lives in the area and has a house with a huge back yard. And a pool. And a big tent. And knows how to hold a pig roast. Matt did an amazing job hosting the party! A couple other classmates worked with Matt to organize the event, including somehow finding a bunch of old classmates who’d moved out of the area.
When the day finally arrived, 36 classmates, most with spouses and/or kids in tow, showed up that Saturday at Matt’s house. Considering that many of us didn’t really like each other very much, that’s a pretty amazing accomplishment. Nikki flew in from Dallas, Matt from Seattle, and me from Boston. A few other classmates came from around the Midwest. It was a much better showing than I think any of the organizers had expected.
And I’m glad to say that I think everyone had a great time. Better than anyone had expected.
And isn’t it weird when one sees old classmates, all of the old emotions, hurts, embarrassments, loves, and fights surface again? Maybe that’s why so many stayed away. Still, it was good to face them. I found myself really liking the people that several of my old classmates had become and wishing that we all lived closer. Who knows when I’ll see any of them again, but I’m *really* glad that I went to the reunion.
In case you’re curious, here are some pictures: http://handaweb.com/gallery/main.php?g2_itemId=2648
