Going back (25th reunion edition)

I’m typing this on my porch while most of the rest of my family is at the Mandalorian and Grogu movie. It is damp but at least it isn’t freezing like it was last night, so I will take it!

It has been quite the weekend. I went to my 25th college reunion. Princeton really likes to do things up for Reunions, and the 25th is a big deal. For instance, we get to lead the P-rade (after the Old Guard). The majority of my class came back, and they brought their families, which means there were something like 2000 people there.

I drove out on Thursday afternoon, parked and checked in at the 25th reunion tent and immediately started seeing people I knew. It was funny — we all look vaguely like our college selves but, of course, 25 years older. Some people I recognized immediately. Some took a second! I stayed until 10:30 (5 straight hours of small talk is a lot for this introvert), at which point I went to my car and it wouldn’t open! The key fob battery was dead, or I guess almost dead. I managed to get it started by holding the key in the hand I was opening the door with, and then pressing on the start button with the key right next to it (there’s a door key in the fob, but that doesn’t help for starting the car). I drove to my parents’ house (they live in Princeton) and my dad got me to CVS the next morning to get a new battery. Phew.

Anyway, Friday was another long day of catching up. A particular highlight — my freshman writing seminar reunion. Back in 1998, about 16 of us (I think) were accepted into a seminar on creative non-fiction taught by John McPhee. This was the first time he had ever taught his famous class as a freshman seminar. He liked the format so much that after that he taught his class only as a sophomore seminar from then on. He was already a legend then. We learned a lot, and it was a memorable class, made more so by tragedy — one of our members was killed the next year in a car crash. One of my classmates reached out shortly before reunions and said she was hoping to organize a get-together, maybe with Prof. McPhee who, at age 95, is still with us and writing articles for the New Yorker (and was teaching until 2020!) She reached out and he said we could come by his house, so 12 of us did on Friday afternoon. It was amazing to talk with him and each other, and just relive college. Kind of a sad goodbye when we all left but I’m amazed and so thankful it happened.

My husband came and met me for our class dinner Friday night and then it was back to the tents for more chatting. We drove home to the Philadelphia suburbs to stay overnight with our kids — back around midnight. The next day we left again, with them, around noon to go back for the P-rade.

This is always quite an experience. My classes have always been toward the end (you march in reverse order except the 25th) but this time we were right at the start, so we were done marching by 2:45. But, alas, it was really cold and really wet. It drizzled most of the day. It was only 50 degrees and kind of windy. We marched through campus in our orange and black and holding our signs, and then one of my college roommates wisely suggested we go to the campus center for hot chocolate and coffee. We did and hung out with her and her husband for about 90 minutes, kind of just trying to stay dry and out of the rain! We went back to the 25th tent when they reopened at 5, and the kids made it through to 7 before my husband left with them. Since my car was still there, I left later — but only made it to 9 p.m. As I was walking to my car I was counting steps I was so cold. Something about 50 degrees and rainy is just bad!

But I’m still so glad I went (I did warm up eventually). I got to talk with so many people I haven’t seen in years. The people I was closest to in college are still awesome to hang out with and so I’m telling myself to get in a car or get on a plane and go see people more often. As my kids get older I have more of the ability to do this.

We don’t have big Memorial Day plans. Today was pretty low key — church, tennis lessons, then a brief “hike” in a local park with the 6-year-old and a stint in the hot tub. Everyone is off at the movie except my daughter, who is experimenting with making gnocchi. She has already made cookies, so it’s been quite a day….