Class Reunions

I just returned home from my 30 year class reunion.  This past weekend was one of the best experiences in my life.  We didn't feel that we needed to impress each other and due to our age, many of our insecurities have passed.  We were able to reminisce, laugh and share our thoughts about each other back then as well as some of the things we are going through right now.  It was a very authentic time for us.  Some of you who read this will know my classmates and some of you will not but you may have someone like this in your life.

I grew up in a very small town of 600 people and there were 11 people in my graduating class--7 boys and 4 girls.  From the time she moved to our town from Texas Sharon Chapman and I were best friends.  We did everything together, we strategized together, we dressed alike and we followed almost pararell paths in life although we lost touch with each other for many years.   As teenage girls we had many hopes and dreams and we had many boyfriends.  I remember feeling very unpopular next to her.  She was always the prettiest and the most athletic.  I often felt that most of our friends wanted to be friends with her and we were a package deal so they got me too whether they wanted it that way or not.  She was always loyal to me and our partnership was always unwavering until our Senior year.  I made a horrible decision to break one of our pacts.  I'm crying as I write this because we can not change the past and some of these decisions we made back then still cause regret because we hurt someone that we loved and cherished and you can't take those moments back.   Sharon and I were nominated to run for homecoming queen when we were Seniors but we declined because I wanted to try out for Junior Miss and she wanted to be a TSJC princess.  In our school there was a tendency to spread the moments in the sun out and we didn't want to do the homecoming queen if it menat that we wouldn't get one of the other opportunities later in the school year.  I tried out for a got Junior Miss but I was also nominated for TSJC.  I told my Mom that I was going to decline TSJC but she felt that I shouldn't as I was the one nominated.  Now, 30 years later, I feel bad that I did not decline it as I promised because it wasn't as important to me as it was to her.  Our friendship wasn't as strong our Senior year and last night we said it was because I didn't go out for basketball that year but I think  that was really the reason.  Sharon has such a kind heart that she didn't hold that against me for the rest of our lives and we renewed our friendship later in the year and this weekend I saw her for the truely caring and loving person that she is.  Clearly, I need to dedicate a blog to Sharon and our teenage friendship so I will move on it my next classmate.  Thank you Sharon for orchestrating a fabulous weekend with many special LV touches.

Larry Morgan--the star athlete of our class. He wasn't the typcial athlete you see in the movies.  The guy that was self-involved.  The guy that eventually became the "Glory Days" man who could only talk about the football games or basketball games many years after high school ended.  Larry went on to build a life knowing that the high school memories were meant to be just that.   Larry is a great father and husband.  He is still as handsome as he was in high school.   Larry was always like a big brother to Sharon and I.  We always could joke and laugh with him without all of the insecurities teenagers usually have.  Larry and his brothers have always been reallly good friends with my Dad.  He loves my Dad, like I do and I know that he thinks of him often.  Thanks Hair Bear for being an incredible classmate,friends and person.

Like Sharon and I, Larry and Eric were always best buds--two peas in a pod.  Eric was the class flirt.  Easy going, cute and very sweet.  I never remember him being mean to ANYONE.  There were four of us that were in school together from Kindergarten to Senior year and Eric was one of them.  When we were in Kindegarten, I had a crush on a little boy but I could never remember his name so I would tell my family that I liked the little boy in the brown shoes--it was Eric.  He got quite the kick out of that.    He is going through some tough times now as he seperated from his wife and he misses his daughters.  I will pray for him that when their wounds heal that his daughters will let him back in their lives.  He is open about his role in his marriage failure but he is a good person and he will make it through.this.  I respect him more than ever because he accepts responsibility for his part and he is very open about it.  It was so funny this weekend, we still had those moments when something would happen and we would give each other that look and we knew what the other was thinking. 

I really believe that Whit is the one person that I misunderstood the most back then.  We dated for a short time but I was insecure and I'm not good at making conversation for conversation sake.  If I have something to say, I say it.  If I want to know something, I ask it but back then I was really shy and I still am in some ways.  I seem confident so often had the label of being stuck up.  Anyway, because of my inability to make conversation we didn't have great conversations because Whit is also quiet.  In him I see the eyes of an old soul who has grown to appreciate the peacefulness of La Veta and other places as well as having the strength to sit there and listen.  He told me that he wanted to have nothing to do with La Veta for 20 years but now when he goes back there it kind of helps to ground him.  I know what he means, I have always felt that about La Veta--like the Miranda Lambert song--"Out here it's like I'm someone else, I thought that maybe I could find myself" "Thought if I could touch this so freely this brokeness in myself might start healing."

Cole the strong silent man who works hard.  He recently married a lady who has an autistic child and he joined us for lunch even though he was worred about her.  Cole is a good man.  Joe Hocket another sweetie-pie with an infectious laugh.  He married the sweetheart of the school, Susan Denton and they have three beautiful daughters.  I think the combination of Hockett, Morgan and Denton means that they are practically related to everyone in La Veta.  Chuck married my cousin Josephine and they have worked hard to raise their children who are very talented athletically.  It was fun seeing our group and remembering the dynamics that we experienced at our school. 

The rest of our classmates did not come.  One person I understand as her experience in high school was mostly painful because of a couple of jerks with big mouths.  If I could hug her now and tell her I'm sorry, I would.  The others felt that it was not a time that they wanted to revisit in any way but we weren't sure why.  We still missed them and I think it would have given them closure.  We had many great memories from those days 30 years ago and now we can include the 30th year reunion at Octoberfest in La Veta.  I always tell my nieces that everything that they are going through will be a distant memory when they go to college and experience the rest of the lifes stages.  I wish I could strip their insecurities so they could see the best in themselves and others.  When you get to this stage, you can see others for who they really are and you can appreciate them.  We were an honery class who always wanted to do things different and we did.  We have all went on to persue the things in life that are most important to us including reuniting to drink, eat, laugh and remember.  Thank you my friends for the memories from then and now.