Oh, What A Night...

 ...and what a great day, too! 

My class reunion day began with Cyd. We ate lunch at a favorite restaurant

in my home town. Afterward, she and I hopped in the car and went to my

Aunty Margaret and Uncle Dick's home near the lake. Because of our long

shared history, she loves my aunt and uncle as much as I do, so we stopped

by for a few cups of English tea, biscuits and conversation. We also got to
tour their beautiful floral gardens while we were there. Both of them enjoy
gardening. (I love to "look".) It was a truly lovely afternoon spent with them.

Yesterday was Aunty's Birthday and our visit was only part of her gift.

We're not finished surprising her, either.

Happy Birthday, Aunty Margaret!

 After we finished our tea and thanked them both for their hospitality,

we drove back into town to our old neighborhood where Cyd had

reserved accommodations at a Bed & Breakfast in a carriage house.

It was behind a home we passed every day as kids. It was perfect!

We got ready to go to the reunion, and we were able to walk to the venue

from the B & B. (We even used some of the shortcuts we used as kids!)

l-r: Sue, Karen, Cyd, Deb, Jean and moi!

 Old girlfriends couldn't wait to catch up...after a picture, of course!

l-r: Colleen, Patti, John, Cyd, Mrs. Eric, Erik, Jeff and me

So many friends, so little time!

From our class of nearly 700, there were about 140 people who came out

to reminisce and celebrate. I didn't want to miss saying hello to a single 

one of them. I took lots of photos to share on our class Facebook page, 

and I have many more to add to my own personal photo album at home.

I still had plenty of time to enjoy hearing about how friends are doing now. 

There are wives, husbands, children and grandchildren for some of us.

Some are retired, some enjoying interesting travels and exciting careers. All

of us are blessed with good health and we were all so happy to see each other.

l-r: Sherryl, Mutzie, Del and me

 I even spent part of the evening catching up with my step-sister, Sherryl, old

roomie, Mutz and a great friend, Del. These are friendships that have lasted

 a lifetime. We had so much fun talking about old apartments, old crushes

 (sometimes thanking God for unanswered prayers!), and all things new.

A friend asked me Saturday night what I have learned in the past forty years.

I thought about it a moment, remembering that every single classmate I saw

greeted me with a smile and a hug. (We hugged a lot last weekend!) and I

replied, "After forty years, everyone is equal...everyone is a friend."

All the silly cliques have disappeared. We were genuinely happy to see

each other. We realize now that we were all young, all struggling to find

our places in life. We were developing our personalities into the people 

we are today. We were becoming our wonderful, unique adult selves.

Now, we can value each other for our differences, as much as 

for all those qualities that make us the same. Although it seems to have

taken forever, in grand retrospect, it was actually just the blink of an eye.

We've all grown up.

Happy 40th, Class of 1973.

I'll never forget the great celebration we shared this year.

You're all truly the best of the best.