West Hempstead High School Reunion – 2011

I expected to have a bit of a hangover the morning after our reunion.  Wine did flow freely as I expected; the fact that it was included in the reunion expense made it all the more inviting.  I also expected to be a bit anxious not knowing what to expect when greeting my fellow WHHS students after 47 years had passed.  This did not happen as most everyone was friendly and gracious and very few insisted on embarrassing me by imposing name or face recognition tests that I would invariably fail.  Indeed, most of those attending understood from first experience the physiological consequences of aging, the evolution of selective memory, and the limitations that increasingly impose their ugly will as we “grow” with age.  Nevertheless, that didn’t stop me from being awed by the unbelievable memory for detail of past events that some of our classmates produced, as if it were yesterday!

We owe a debt of gratitude to the planning committee; of course Jeff and Mike and the others for their tireless effort and the fabulous result.  For me, I dreaded the thought of attending any event at the “Sands”, expecting some throw back from the past that was musty, dark, dingy, dirty and desolate.   In fact, for the purposes of our reunion, it was perfect!  The venue near the beach, the lobby, the cocktail hour in a separate reception area, the “ballroom”, the location and quality of the bar and buffet, the stage, the size and quality of the dance floor, the DJ and music, the presentations and awards, the outstanding video……..everything was perfect for this special occasion. 

I’m only sorry for a few things.  First, sorry that more of our classmates did not attend -although others felt the attendance was spectacular.  I do not want to venture to guess how many more could have attended, but there was at least some room for improvement (I guess I’m a glass half empty type of guy).   Nevertheless, for me, there were only three others that I wished would have attended, so that was pretty good.  Second, I’m sorry that we were not more attentive to the presentations and I especially apologize to Jeff for the boisterous disregard for his excellently crafted presentation, albeit a bit monotone, still no excuse for the cheekiness of the group (including me) who seemed more immersed in table gossip rather than sharing in the collective history and wisdom of our gathering.   Third, a chill ran down my spine during the slide presentation showing our classmates who have passed.  I knew as much from the continuous dialogue and colored updates from Jeff, but to witness the continuous flow of senior profile pictures of those who have departed brought a tear or two to my eyes.        

Why was this reunion special…..I asked myself?  In the same breath, I asked myself, why did I attend this reunion?  Or for that matter why does anyone attend any reunion?  To see and catch up with friends of the past, for curiosity, to see how old and ugly and out of shape others have become to compare yourself to, to revisit and bring some closure to someone who you had some unfulfilled attraction to, or as an affirmation of our class having survived about 65 years of happy life as the reunion’s message would want us to embrace. I’m certain there are reasons others might conjure, but I won’t bore you further in speculation.  I will say that I had my own public and private reasons for attending and I enjoyed every moment.  Shelley, thank you for making this an even more special occasion!

The fact is that I was - and I think we all were remarkably impressed with each other.  It was not a geriatrics ward of terminal seniors, but rather a youthful gathering of adults much younger that our age would indicate (lets leave mirrors out of this), spirited and happy, accomplished and confident, gracious and sociable, kind and friendly.  It was truly a grand experience, and one worth having travelled half the earth to attend (as I did).  Let’s do it again in another 47 years.  Maybe we’ll get more of our classmates to attend next time to make it an even grander event.