When did time take on wings?
I close my eyes and I can still see the crowded hallways,
I wonder if others still see the faces
Passing from class to class?

Concentrating, I can almost hear
The band tuning up
And
The choir singing.
Somewhere down inside, I still
Feel that class spirit.

Remembering the bus rides to and from
Games that we so often lost,
I still feel the hoarseness of my throat from singing
One more time
"Sonny, blow you horn".

Marching here and there to the beat
Of our "superior" band
And girls...
Your gloves must be white!

Can you hear--listen
Listen with your heart...
Can you hear?
No, that's not a lion's roar,
That's us.

I've thought about how many there were of us
And wondered, did I touch anyone's life...
You each left a mark on me.
I hear a name and recall the face.
Silly little remarks or passing
Comments come to mind
And I realize we are a part of one another.
There are roots that will not be shaken.
Some more than others
Touched lives and added to what
Each of us has become.

As a whole, we endured life-changing moments
A president shot
Murmuring of war coming
And with utter sadness, I recall
Hearing John and Bobbie
Were dead
"That can't be right, they've got to graduate..
Oh God, how unfair."

Finally the big night............
Crowded on a stage
Somehow not really caring about the heat.
We worked and rushed forward to this mark
And in that moment,
Realizing nothing would ever be the same.

Life school took our borders and paths further.
Faces have changed but to the inner eye,
We remain the same.

Now, there are names of those passing
Into yet a greater school,
Into life beyond.
My heart is saddened to not have said
Your life mattered to me.
You were a part of the
Combination and collection that I have become
And your absence matters.

To those of us continuing,
I reach out my hand and heart
To say, you matter to me.
We have a unique bond....
And it matters.
Those not together in body
Remain together in spirit
And each one of the whole has a
Belonging.

Cherish the moment,
Cherish the memories,
Cherish each other for
You matter to me.