Reunion Thoughts

---

5/26/01
As I am writing this, I am slowly recovering from an evening of poker faced smiles, varying degrees of handshake strengths, faux hugs, and mental gymnastics.  See, I'm in the middle of my 10 year highschool reunion.

It was a surreal experience.  My mind is reeling at the thought that 10 years has come and gone.  Has it really been 10 years from the time I was that dorky kid in highschool?  10 years from prom anxiety?  From football jocks and cheerleaders?  From cruising the local strip?  I find myself repeating to myself, "10!  10 years!!  10!!!  Years!!!!"

Seeing all the familiar and now not-so-familiar faces was bizarre.  I found that some names came back quickly: Shawn, Steph, Dana, etc.  I found others did not come back at all: Robert? Lisa? Nigel Carruthers?  I walked carefully, as if in fear of land mines, wondering who were classmates and who were just spouses or significant others.  I spent half the nite speaking only in pronouns: "Hey, you!  How have you been?"  I found myself barely supressing the urge to yell "Who the @#@$% are you?"

It was strange to see who time had aged or inflated so savagely and who time had added a sheen of maturity.  A large number of people were married and had kids (some who the very thought of their reproducing concerns me a great deal).  Some of the shallowest and immature people I remember have now become parents.  I quickly found myself inuandated with baby pictures and stories about the joys of parenthood:

    "Little Bobby is 6 months old now" she said.
    "Oh really?  Sally was 8lbs when she was born."  He replied.
    "Oh!  She's so big now!!"  she answered.
    "Whoops!  Look who had an accident."
    "Kinda like the time after homecoming you got so drunk, you $#!T yourself, remember?"  I said.

For the first half hour, people ran up to me and screamed.  Hugs were exchanged, hands shook.  They asked how I was, what was I up to, where I was now.  No doubt I'm a successful doctor, married with a couple kids.  Remember that time in class when...?  Oh, I always knew you'd do something great...Oh, really?  That's so interesting....God!  You look great!!

Needless to say my next stop was the bar for another glass of scotch.

But I strangely enough, I felt no connection with these people last nite.  I found myself pretending to sound interested, all the while fearing that the fake smile I had stuck tomy face would end up permanently disfiguring me like Jack Nicholson in Batman.  As I walked through the reunion seeing old classmates, it became apparent that I hadn't formed any real lasting friendships.  I wasn't reminescing or commiserating about the football team that year, or recalling stories of the high school play.  I wasn't really there to reconnect with these people, but rather drawn to them out of some morbid curiousity about what had become of their lives.  The nite unfolded before me as some all to real Jenny Jones episode.

Well, this is part one of my reunion memoirs.  There are more activities planned for the weekend, so no doubt more to write about.