So why did I attend this reunion? Because of reality shows. High School reunions are the ultimate personal reality show (so much so an actual reality show was based on the premise). Where else can you throw 300 middle-aged people into a situation where the last effective dynamic was as 18 year olds, and be a participant?
At any such event the topics of discussion are biographical: College, careers, migrations, marriage, family, kids. And nostalgic: misdeeds, pranks, angst, and glories of our adolescence. But what everybody is thinking about is hair, weight, success, and how they look compared to others. Of course I was focused on another issue, not entertained by the vast majority: Who might be gay?. I had a mental list of those I thought might be or those that I hoped would be, but none seemed to be. (It’s a military town in Virginia, the very model of conservative). When the subject came up, I explained my life-long unmarried status honestly. In high school I knew I was gay, but certainly was not out. I think a few had suspected back then and none seem too surprised about it now. A few went so far as to ask if I had a partner. (the answer is no)
But I do have a few observations:
The “A” list is till the “A” list. While subject to the indignities of middle age like everyone else, there was still a measure of confidence and ease in those that were on top and had stayed there.
Geeks rule. The math and science geeks, not the jocks and prom queens run the world.
It’s impossible to picture exactly how someone might look at 48 when you last saw them at 18, but once you do see them, their 30-years-older look makes perfect sense.
A few men and women look stunningly better at 48 than at 18.
1975 was a really, really bad hair year for men, and one or two had yet to get over it by 2005.
Somewhere in the intervening 30 years, stoners, clowns, nerds, jocks, and cheerleaders, became spouses, parents, grandparents, lawyers, business people, engineers, writers, airline pilots, shopkeepers, and college professors. Boys into men, Girls into women. But I am still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow up. Maybe I’ll have that figured out by the 50th reunion in 2025.
Pictures from the Reunion
