They Had to Invite Me

[rodi]

I went to my first reunion 2 years ago... it was the 30th.
My graduating class/school was the basis for Fast Times at Ridgemont High - so they always bring that stuff up.
It was also a huge graduating class - over 1000 people. I think I knew 5 people at the reunion.

We held an unofficial reunion the next spring for the group I hung out with (the smart nerdy kids who weren't cheerleaders, athletes, etc...) That was a LOT of fun.

 

[Nords]

The one I liked best, because he was whip-smart, good-looking and kind, had married a gorgeous, blond...man.
Amethyst

Maybe you broke his heart and soured him on your entire gender...

 

[redduck]

I didn't make the 10th reunion as I was away at graduate school and couldn't afford the travel expenses. I heard that it just wasn't all that interesting and almost everybody was basically the same as they were in high school. I did attend the 20th, 30th and 40th. Most of us seem to have improved with age. We are calmer. At the 40th there was very, very little one-upsmanship (I have no idea how to spell that). At the 40th, we were basically thrilled that most of us who showed up were still alive. I imagine the 50th will be magnifying that thrill. From the lists being sent out, it's chilling to see who had died, in part because they are remembered as they were in high school.

Growing up, I don't know how close we all were, but most of us knew one another for one reason or another. I think most of us were impacted by one another whether we admitted it or not. You get to admit it at a reunion. And, that is fun--a lot of fun.

But, in our emails to one another, there is also a sadness that seeps in because it is realized this will be the last time that a lot of us will be able to see the people (outside of family members) that we have know the longest.

 

[Brat]

A 50-year reunion had a completely different feel than earlier gathering. One of my dear friends is a Rhodes Scholar, retired physician. He and I reminisce about parties where we played Tom Leher records and .... Such is youth!

 

[Bestwifeever]

I have a big college reunion coming up this fall and am looking forward to it. I would imagine it's more fun to sit around with some of your oldest friends in person and reconnect with others and have a few drinks and laugh about present and past things versus looking at photos and making comments on a Facebook page. And then you can go home and enjoy more memories that you've just made, or escape from them, and laugh at yourself. I can't remember anyone trying to one-up each other on their accomplishments but maybe we're just a big underachieving bunch.

 

[rescueme]

My 50th HS reunion will arrive in the mail in a few years, and I'll do with it what I did with all others - throw it in the trash.

It's just a reminder of the personal worst period of my life (actually, I did quite well in HS - much better than my earlier years) but was under a lot of pressure due to events outside of school.

Those days are better left behind, in my case. Not all reunions are cause for celebration.

 

[Sarah in SC]

I've helped organize the two we've had at the small private school from which I graduated. We have them as an "all school" event, so anyone who went there and is inclined, is welcome to come, regardless of year of or whether they graduated from there or not.

Small town sort of thing, I think fun, but certainly not for everyone. It has been 24 years since my class of 30 graduated, and the school closed that year forever. So we have a bit of nostalgia for the time and the place.

I guess we'll corral up folks for another in a few years, but it is a low-key sort of thing, not like some enormous high school like some of you folks went to. And we were a whole bunch of underachievers and beach bums, so there isn't a whole lot of one-upmanship to be found.

 

[Brat]

Keep in mind that adolescence probably wasn't a cake walk even for popular students. While thoughts of 'if I'd known then what I know now' are common I don't think many want to re-live those years.

 

[W2R]

Keep in mind that adolescence probably wasn't a cake walk even for popular students. While thoughts of 'if I'd known then what I know now' are common I don't think many want to re-live those years.

That is the way I feel about it. Plus, by now our lives have diverged so much that we probably have even less in common now, than we did then.

I receive invitations every year, which I throw away, and CDs with photos after each. I did not even look at the last one. I did complete my bio on the class website, in case someone is wondering "What ever happened to her?" That should suffice.

 

[Nords]

Keep in mind that adolescence probably wasn't a cake walk even for popular students. While thoughts of 'if I'd known then what I know now' are common I don't think many want to re-live those years.

Same for college, too...

 

[obgyn65]

I have never been to a HS reunion since my HS is located thousands of miles away. Redduck - please let us know how your reunion goes.

 

[freebird5825]

I've been to 2 reunions, 15th and 25th.

I attended an all girls' Catholic school (not MY idea ) near NYC, 20 miles from my hometown. So anyone I went to Catholic elementary school with continued on to the public schools and we lost track of each other in that sense. The school closed 6 years after I graduated. I went to college immediately following HS graduation in 1976 and only returned to my hometown for holidays and summers. I was w*rking all the time to save up for room and board, so my social life was a bit thin.

I decided to continue living in upstate NY so I never kept up friendships made in HS downstate except for 2 very close classmates. Over the years, I have been better about contacting them. Current status is they both owe me return phone calls.

The most recent was an "all school" type reunion, held at a convent, a luncheon format with a ridiculous price, no music or bar. Huh?
Obviously, I skipped that one.

 

[Amethyst]

So, does that mean that some of the show-ups were undead? Inquiring minds and all that!

Amethyst

I At the 40th, we were basically thrilled that most of us who showed up were still alive. .

 

[M Paquette]

So, does that mean that some of the show-ups were undead? Inquiring minds and all that!

Amethyst

That sounds like it would make for the usual scintillating reunion conversation...

"Whoa! Sid! You haven't... um... changed a bit..."

"Brrrrainsss?"