"There are places I remember, all my life, though some have changed...."

A whole year since my last post....I guess I must be in the Reunion phase of my life; last year was my high school folk group, and this year was my grade school graduation reunion.  Whenever someone asked me what my summer plans were, I told them they’d laugh if they knew; and most of them did, followed by, “Are you serious?” Deadly. 

It started with a much less complicated plan….Tim had never seen where I grew up, whereas I’d spent lots of time in his hometown. There was talk of a Dean family get-together at the family summer home in the north woods of Wisconsin, so it only made sense to combine them, with a visit to our son and his wife thrown in for good measure.  Then, multiple emails/Facebook posts between several of us grade school buddies planted the seeds of “We should have another reunion – the last one was 20 years ago!” Never one to pass on a dare, I started to set things in motion by proposing a date, subtracting a week from the Dean family bash. When enough classmates agreed to that, we were off to the races.  We kept our expectations realistic – how many people are really interested in seeing their grade school friends 45 years after graduation, anyway? – and started researching lost souls.  Many folks had not gone far from the area, and lots were in touch on Facebook and email, so it was easy to track them down.

We found a small neighborhood tavern, once owned by an older St. Dom’s graduate, that would give us a back room as long as we bought food and drinks (you’re on). Put together an Evite, and waited for a flurry of responses. And waited.  And waited……and waited…..and worried……we decided that even if ten of us showed up, it would be a blast. And we also figured that lots of people might not decide until the very last minute.  We were right.

On August 6, we jumped on a plane from Portland to Chicago, where we had a 3 hour layover (I hate O’Hare….) and finally landed in Cleveland around 11 pm, arriving at our host’s home close to midnight. Bless her heart, Karen waited up for us and got us settled.

Thornton Pool, which has only gotten bigger and better than it
was when I was a kid....

"The deep end", where all diving took place. The high dive
has been removed.....

The next morning, we took off on a tour of Shaker Heights, the town in Ohio where I lived from age 3 to age 11 ½. Despite the fact that half the town was undergoing road work and construction, I was still able to navigate most of it by memory – The house where I grew up, the school around the corner where I attended kindergarten, the Duck Pond, my sister’s high school, and the city pool where I spent virtually every summer day as a child. Don't know if Tim was impressed, but I sure was! 

My house...well, at one time, anyway. The last 10 years have
not been friendly...a less than accurate paint job, and two
dead trees have changed its looks completely. Makes me
wonder if it's in foreclosure...

Chris, Julie, Steve, Maureene, Herb, Katie

Saturday was the actual day of the reunion. The plan was to meet in the school for a brief reception and tour (like I couldn’t walk through that place blindfolded….) then 5 pm Mass in one of the prettiest churches ever. I was going to join the music group with another of the reunion planners who was a regular member, so I took Tim for an early tour…going up a staircase in the main hall, I noticed several old, framed pictures from decades past; I looked more closely, and saw that one was “Graduating Class of 1962” which just happened to be my older brother’s class! It was too far away for me to see clearly, so we took it down, and sure enough, there was my brother, second row, third from the left. We were able to get a copy which will be sent to him for safekeeping! J

Top Row: Sharon, Cathy, Katie, Karen, Maureene, Steve
Bottom: Jim, Mark, Herb, Julie, Wendy

Then on to the choir loft…there was Jim, my friend the drummer, his wife Barb, who did all sorts of percussion and woodwinds, a delightful Holy Cross brother who did keyboards, the choir director, and me. It was somewhat intimidating, because I knew that this director had a fabulous reputation, and he knew nothing about me – he was doing it as a favor to Jim, who had provided one of his 12 string guitars for me to use. A very quick rehearsal, and then I saw the Class of 1970 come into the church. Most of them knew nothing about what I had done with music since we last saw one another, but they knew I was up there in the balcony. It was so much fun to be doing what I loved in a place that I loved, and it was over before I knew it.

Ya just can't get everyone to look straight ahead at the same time!

After a few more pictures in front of school, it was off to The Tavern Company, meeting up with some folks who weren’t at the church. The next 3 hours flew by, with lots of catching up – sharing pictures, stories, and meeting spouses and friends who became part of the picture in the days after 8^th grade!

Wendy and Karen - who says we're almost 60?

Cathy, Katie, Steve, and Mark

Jim's band, "Up 'Til Four", provided great covers of songs from our era

Herb and Chris, deep in manly conversation

Kathy listens while the other Cathy gives Katie an earful...

Most of this will mean nothing to anyone but me or the few friends who choose to read it. So many people wondered why I would spend so much of my hard-earned vacation meeting up with people I hadn’t seen in 20 or more years. But it was the single best thing I did all year….those people are a link to my past, my childhood, my “formative years”, as they call them. We share memories and experiences that can’t be duplicated, that are as clear to us as if they happened last week. Those in attendance are doing well, look terrific, and were genuinely happy to be there. We passed around a list for those interested in keeping in touch my email or snail mail. I consider myself blessed and privileged to have known such wonderful people, and to have had the opportunity to reconnect after so many years.

The icing on the cake was attending an Indians game the next day…..and they WON!!!!! That is the only time I EVER went to an Indians game where they won…..

So, here's to the good ol' days....itchy wool uniforms, May Crownings, the St. Patrick's Day plays, and the best friends ever... love you guys! Except for Sr. Mary Agnes....!

Progressive Field, home of the Indians - much nicer than the stadium
where I used to attend games with my brothers.