Three months ago, when an old classmate floated the idea, it sounded like a lot of fun, at least as far as class reunions go: a cruise around Lake Murray at sunset, a feast of low-country cuisine and adult beverages, if so inclined, while visiting with friends from long ago… As the day drew closer, though, I found myself wondering, was this a good idea-for me? There was only one way to know for sure…
I can’t speak for anyone else who attended, but I definitely spent more than a couple of hours in search of something appropriate to wear, giving it far more consideration than I usually expend on such things... It was difficult to find something dressy, comfortable and representative of whom I’ve become; nearly everything was designed for someone twenty years older or wishing they were twenty years younger than I am…
How silly is it that I even cared about the impression I would make with what I wore, more than twenty-five years later? Some things never change…
My high school years were not the greatest period of my life; I had an abundance of book-learned knowledge, but not much in the way of common sense or worldly wisdom, especially with regard to relationships. I graduated a year early and never looked back…until this weekend.
It’s funny how things come full circle in life… Back then I felt like an outsider because I had a child; this time it was because I’d lost one…
The feeling had nothing to do with anything anyone said or did…it was entirely self-inflicted. The awkward, insecure teenager I thought to be long gone was resurrected for a single night’s encore…
I have to say, briefly reliving my own personal angst from that era reminded me of exactly why teenagers are moody, volatile and all over the place…
I can absolutely proclaim I’ve no major regrets about my decision to exit early and move on, other than a general wish that I’d been a better friend to some of these classmates long before I left high school in my rear view…
All things considered, I think it was good to revisit where I came from, since it just might help me figure out where I want to go…
“Every saint has a past, every sinner has a future.” – Oscar Wilde
Wishing you many blessings and hope…tg
Tammy will update her blog twice weekly…
