During this graduation season we have witnessed many celebrations of moving on to the next phase of life for many young people in the family. Whether it’s graduation from high school, college or an advance degree, this is a period of life which symbolizes movement. To many it means travelling to new environs to continue their education. To others it may mean travelling to a new job or promotion. Nonetheless, life is full of these escapades which create what we call the big picture of life.
This past week-end we did a different type of travelling, “Time Travelling”. Yes we went back in time to our 45th high school reunion of the class of 1966 Booker T. Washington High School in the ATL. This is the oldest African American high school in the city and maybe the state. It has such luminous graduates as Martin Luther King Jr., (who actually left early as I did), Julian Bond, Maynard Jackson and the list goes on and on.
It was great to see so many young faces which have matured in to older faces but one always associates high classmates as they were then and not as they are now. I guess high school days hold a very special place in the hearts and memories of most people for a variety of reasons. I guess it the first time in life that male-female relationships start to blossom. It is also has a great influence on one’s socialization skills. High school, at least the summer before high school, is where I met Claudette, my wife of 44 years. There was a book out several years ago entitled “Everything You Need to Know, You Learn by the 4th Grade” or something like that. I think everything you did in high school probably had more impact. One remembers the awkwardness, the feeling of not belonging sometimes, the slights, the victories and the defeats. We never know what impact those things had on who we became (Either because of or in spite of.).
It was nice travelling back in time this week-end.
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