10 year Reunioning

Last night was Los’ 10 year Seattle Prep high school reunion. Up until 8pm we weren’t sure we were going to go. I don’t know how many people feel apprehensive before reunions, probably a lot. On the one hand, high school was amazing, and you made memories with great people that you are fond of. On the other hand, being a teenager can be a painful experience for a multitude of reasons, and reentering an environment like that can dredge up old insecurities/anxieties. Add to that that 10 years is a LONG time, and so many changes happen during that. You don’t want others to put you in a box of who you used to be, but you don’t know otherwise, unless you’ve been invested in the same people the past decade.
So anyway, we didn’t know if we’d go. But we went to the waterfront Marriott bar to meet some of Los’ old buddies (of the group of 6 of them, 5 were represented last night, impressive considering that they live around the nation and married people from all 4 corners of the country). It was a lot of fun for me to have insight into a portion of Los’ life that I have only heard about and seen pictures from.
So we got a cab with them and went. It was in Post Alley in the upstairs banquet room of Kell’s, great little place. Los had said the only reason he wanted to go to his reunion was to apologize to a couple people for the jerk he’d been to them in high school. He got to do that, which I was all about, just to wipe the slate clean and have peace. I don’t have many regrets from my high school years, but he did, and it was meaningful for people to have him apologize.
We ended up having a lot of fun and talking to all kinds of people he liked, that are now doctors, lawyers and other professionals. It’s cool to hear what people dream about, and who they have become. Since Prep is a private school, his class was pretty small, 150ish, and everyone has become pretty successful.
Even though we may never have any of those couples as our close friends, it was fun to revisit the past with them, and to hear about what 10 years has done in different lives… I am really sad I will miss my own reunion next weekend in California. The timing of it just didn’t work out for us; and I am sad not to have the chance to see people I cared a lot about. So at least I got to live vicariously through Los last night, a good time was had by all.