Reunion part 1

Saturday night was the reunion of the people with whom I'd graduated from high school in central Massachusetts. After 40 years, some of us look more or less the same and some people...well, they're jaw-droppingly different. I didn't even recognize one of the guys I used to have a wicked crush on because of his thick wavy gray (not red) hair, thick glasses, and paunch. We all have more seasoned skin and most carry a few more pounds. More noticeable than the difference in appearance, though, was the absence of the social barriers that used to exist. People who hardly gave me the time of day back in high school were calling me by name and engaging me in conversation, genuinely glad to see me. We spent a few hours enjoying delicious barbecued skewers of chicken and marinated beef, salads and rolls, and friendly talk. Almost half of us in attendance are somehow involved in education, and several of us exchanged business cards related to our second creative careers. Even my spouse enjoyed himself, being recognized by a few of the men who have attended these gatherings each time and getting to know some of the others as they stood on the sun porch "guarding" the beverage coolers.

Our hosts were a classmate of mine and one of Sis2's who had married not long after my husband and I did. After living out of town for quite a few years, they were able to purchase a big square old farm house a couple of miles from the town center and renovate its interior extensively, making it into a lovely home. The original plan was to have the event catered and for us to use their porch, deck and back yard, but since Hurricane Hanna was determined to join us, we used their tv room, dining room, kitchen and sun room, and a few wandered out onto the deck in the drizzle (at that point) to cool off as the rooms indoors became warm despite air conditioning. The caterer set up the barbecue grills under shelter outdoors so the whole neighborhood could enjoy the aromas and our hosts didn't have to scramble to find cooking space indoors. The couple kept as much of the old original house as they could, jacking up floors and squaring walls and doorways, using replica wallpaper close to the original, and decorating walls with original antique maps and signs found in this and their previous home. Heather had found a box of pieces of stained glass collected by Mark's mother who used to make lamps and suncatchers, and she commissioned a local woman to use some of the rescued glass in some new lampshades with local flowers and pine cones in the patterns. We thanked them several times for opening up their home to us until finally Mark admitted that he had one huge advantage over the rest of us: when the party was over, he didn't have to drive anywhere to find his bed! I figure that's why he concocted a bowl full of evilly pink Hurricane Hanna Punch for us which I sampled, but it tasted like it might do my liver more damage than the actual storm would so I left it alone after a couple of sips and stuck to wine.

Two of the people present were from my old neighborhood off East Main Street, and I hadn't seen either of them in many years. Nancy has five children and is fairly recently divorced, and Larry oversees housing at Harvard and shares his off duty time with his significant other. Both of them are still very much the same friendly people but comfortable in their lives now, and I hope we can stay in touch. Really. Mark had provided a spreadsheet where we filled in our contact information, and the hope is that he'll share that with all of us soon. Speaking of sharing, after I download the photos that my spouse graciously took of the group, I'll post one here. It'll be amusing, I promise.

Not amusing at all was the drive home. Rain that had been light but constant had become much heavier, and the wind had picked up some by the time we decided to head north. Several people had difficulty trying to drive up the slick wet incline of the back part of the yard, so they'd be waiting a while. We had parked in the front row, and driving carefully we'd been able to drive out smoothly. (I cringe to think how ugly their back lawn was today.) Between the wind, the dark, the changed highway exit numbers, the added stoplights, and the driving rain, my husband had a difficult task in getting us home safely, and it did take an extra half hour, but we made it in one piece. I think I was asleep about 2 minutes after my head hit the pillow: it takes a lot of energy to grip an arm rest with each hand and to simulate pressing gas pedal and brake with both feet for a 2.5 hour drive! The dry, sunny weather today was most welcome.