Friday October 31, 2008...Reunion

Reunion: the state of being united again; a gathering of relatives, friends, or associates at regular intervals or after separation. Synonym: homecoming, reuniting

And so, as I face the reunion of my former high school classmates, I look forward to a homecoming, a reuniting of friends and family who shared years together – long ago. We were like a close knit family, sharing our youth and experiencing adventures and learning and maturing together. The memories of those years stay with us our whole life, the good ones and the bad ones. We learned from both and carried that knowledge with us in the following years. Those years were formative years. We were shaped and molded by our teachers, our friends and our own experiences.

The years have passed and many of those friends and classmates haven't been a part of our life since then, but I suspect that when we reunite the years of separation will fade away and our youthful memories will bring back our friendships and help establish new ones.

A reunion is a time to cast away former grudges and disappointments and to congratulate our mutual survival and discover who we have all become. This is a special time that ties our past to our present and brings us a new focus on life. We set out in life years ago and here we are now each with their own successes and failures, joys and disappointments to share with our friends who were there when we started. There may never be another reunion like this one, but this one will be special.