A subject of some debate in my own mind over the last couple of months has been whether I should brave my tenth year college reunion. At one point, I didn't want to go because I was so down in the dumps about my own lack of progress since the five year reunion, that I just didn't see the bright side of a weekend with a motley crew of folks I knew (or totally didn't) from ten years ago. Then I was optimistic about a job prospect and figured I'd be too busy settling into my new location and function that the reunion would be out of the cards. Eventually, through much cajoling and handholding by a select few, I got over myself and registered for the weekend while also reserving a dorm room on campus. Once that was done, it was just a matter of not freaking out. If an 'Irish Goodbye' is leaving the party without telling anyone, is deciding not to go at all an "Irish Hello'? Because I was definitely thinking about it.
I took Friday off from work so I could drive up on the earlier side and go to a few different spots off-campus before finally signing in and getting down to the reunion part of the whole shebang. This began with an almost immediate stop at
the Burrito Stand, which was open despite the terribly rainy and not especially warm weather that plagued the entire two days of activities. I did not hesitate in my request for a burrito with guacamole because that is just how it is done. A delicious burrito, it was. I sat in my car as the rain blurred my window and didn't mind terribly when some of the juiciness of the tomatoes and guacamole and sour cream found its way to my pants. Such are the sacrifices one makes for an incredibly fresh and tasty burrito.
I then went to a few other spots, which included the sheep farm that I had worked at for almost two years after graduating from college, the low-to-the-ground ranch house where I lived my sophomore and junior years, and a few drives down random roads that allowed for country views and the spectacular reminder of the Catskills in the distance. While the weather was gloomy, I kept being struck by just how much this landcape and environment shaped me and how lucky I was to spend nearly six years in a place where every curve of the road provides a new and breathtaking vista.
I then went to campus and found myself doing a few things very akin to the activities of my college days. Mainly hiding in parking lots, looking at photographs in the photo building, worrying too much about who I might see and that kind of thing. But eventually I made it from the Campus Center to the dorm I'd be staying in with many other members of the Class of 2003 and it was fine. I ran into H. who was never a scary Bard person, whom I also enjoyed seeing from time to time back in my Chicago days. Basically he was a really great first person to see because he didn't scare me then, doesn't scare me now and also is just a really funny and friendly guy. I lucked out. There are so many other people I could have run into first where the lack of acquaintanceship or friendliness would lead to a very strange interaction that would probably leave both parties worrying frantically about what they signed up for...but this opening to the reunion gave me confidence and relieved me of some of my neuroses. I took more Instagram pictures of that early afternoon than real photographs and will probably get around to posting them in the next four months.
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