20 Year High School Reunion

This past weekend was my 20th high school reunion. I didn't go.

 I didn't go for lots of reasons. First, I live a good 8 hours away from my hometown so going would have involved travel, a ton of planning and the expense of pet care. Second, my feet are still killing me so it's bad timing. Third, I'm in touch with everyone I want to be in touch with from high school. Fourth, my graduating class consisted of more than 600 students so my evening would likely consist of making small talk with people I never really knew. Fifth, I didn't feel like spending the evening explaining to people that I spent the last decade in terrible pain that robbed me of my career and most of my hobbies. Sixth, it would have been very loud and crowded, which would have overwhelmed me and triggered a migraine.

I love my hometown and I would love to spend an evening with a group of my old friends from high school, college and work but that wasn't what this was. Still, it got me thinking about old times. I can hardly believe I've been out of high school for more than 20 years now.

What's strange is how it can both feel like a lifetime ago and feel like time went by so fast. Perhaps the intensity of the teenage years leave a lasting impression on us, easily recalled and mistaken for the more familiar present. Perhaps this is why most intense times never feel that long ago, no matter how long ago it was. I also find it hard to believe it has been more than 10 years since my migraines went chronic.