"I've been thinking about this past weekend and the occasion of my 50th class reunion. An event 50 years in the making, only to be delayed another two years due to the Covid Pandemic.
And it was at once familiar and comfortable. And still I was a stranger in a strange land. Surrounded by people I knew once briefly or maybe not at all. But there was comfort knowing we all shared that experience. Three years together at Paducah Tilghman High School.
A Journey Together
And endless possibilities those many years ago…
And we shared so many other things as well. We were explorers after all seeking answers to life’s questions. Looking at the faces I saw this weekend I hope some of us found those answers and if not, maybe they enjoyed the journey all the same.
And the faces I saw shared something else. They told of limitless goodness, endless possibilities, and genuine laughter that was our constant companion, those many years ago. Memories of summer days and starlit nights and a soft summer breeze across the meadows of our young minds.
Youth, where changes came and went and breath-like we sucked in life, and it all seemed right. Changes in and all around, a growing and nearly deafening sound. And with excitement and just a little fear innocence falling, and other voices calling. This age they called adolescence, this dance to the music, a world’s romance played in a melody of never-ending curiosity and never to be dimmed, bright, flashing luminosity.
We laid in summer grass, fresh-cut and when we looked to the sky, we sang songs of wonder, and we kept secrets yearning for the answers to questions from a thousand years.
What was this season if not for joy, where flames burned bright? And journeys took us to lands unknown and the seeds of life were sown. Upon this foundation, now a little cracked and uneven, broken hearts, aching limbs a few regrets.
We see our future now more clearly, our steps more certain if uneven. Our way in life determined by the song we sang so many years ago, and the roads we’ve taken. Softly now, the voices of my youth came back to me this weekend, still asking questions from youthful dreams.
Life isn't really about all that you achieve or that your dream comes true exactly as you hoped it would. A beautiful life is about the journey and adventures along the way. A beautiful life is that you kept going even when things felt hard. A beautiful life is experiencing the new paths that you weren't expecting. A beautiful life is the people you meet along the way. A beautiful life is simply, life. All of it. It's not the end, it's not the achievement, it's not the destination. It's every day and every moment along the way.
To my classmates, I am glad to have shared so much with each of you. I’m glad we all took this beautiful journey together.