A few weeks ago my high school class of 1974 held its 50th class reunion. 50 years!! I did not attend because I live in a different state, and although it would have been fun to see some of the people, it would have been a full weekend of travel so I passed on going.
I should preference this all by saying that my family moved when I was going into my senior year of high school. So, the class that still considers me a member of it, I had left and did not graduate with on stage. So, I really do appreciate that I am still on their rolls, and that I get invited to events. I am on a Facebook group with the class and I occasionally see pictures (thankfully with names attached to the faces. It’s hard to recognize faces 50 years later!)
My reason for this post is because I think about how those fellow classmates have lived 50 years differently from each other. Some have stayed right there in the same small Ohio town. They have worked and raised families there. Some went off to college and never went back. Some excelled and some just got by. Some classmates found a path in life that brought much happiness, and I bet some did not.
Some have already died. As part of the Facebook group I am on I see a list of the deceased members. When a classmate dies it is acknowledged on the page. To tell you the truth a few of them have not surprised me because even back in high school they lived life on the wild side. Some of them had little ambition even then. I could already tell back when we were teenagers. Some had few family or friends pushing for them, supporting them. But others on the deceased list makes me wonder what happened to them. What happened? Was it cancer? An accident?
When I was in high school I had two best girlfriends. We called ourselves the “Three Musketeers” and we sat together every day at lunch, and we went to school dances and games together. We did clubs together: drama club, GAA, French club, etc. We ‘hung’ out away from school, on the weekends and during the summer. Once we three graduated and went on with our own lives we lost daily contact and checked in with annual Christmas cards. Still, we always knew we had a bond. There is something about that time in high school that keeps you connected. 50 years later and we can still remember many funny moments, shared secrets, certain teachers, boy crushes, band trip antics, and more.
50 years since I was a high school student! It amazes me sometimes. So much has changed since then. The whole technology revolution! The instant access to so much information! And – 50 years more of American History! Right? Ha!! I can’t imagine the new stresses on teenagers now-adays . All of the social media interactions and bullying. and, there is the pressure to get into colleges. (By the way, trade schools are awesome – and tradesmen and women are always needed.) The financial burden of education is real. It can be a lifetime payback.
I look back 50 years ago from today and I think back fondly on my high school years. I am lucky that I can. I was not the homecoming queen, or elected a class officer, or the star athlete, or the smart one in the class. I was average. One of many of the Class of ‘74. I blended in. I was not a troublemaker. I liked band and art more than math and science.
I hope teens can enjoy their high school experience today. I hope they can keep everything in perspective. I hope they can appreciate it as a special time in their lives. But, also know, that so much more will happen.
And, I wonder if they can just imagine what this world will look like 50 years from their own graduation – and how they will always be a member of a group, a ‘class’ together!
Marla’s Musings 