Connecting

Last fall I had my 35th high school reunion.

I can't remember if I wrote about it here? My co-chair and I dressed up as Tina Turner and Madonna. (We were the Class of 1984). It was an amazing weekend. The last reunion we had was the 20th, so 2004.

This weekend the reunion committee finally got together for our debrief.

(Tina Turner was tied up at the end of the year getting her PhD.)

It was so fun to get together again. We've decided that the reunion was so enjoyable that we're going to plan quarterly informal get-togethers in our hometown. It occurred to us that some classmates might not have attended because seeing everyone, all at once, after so long, can be a bit overwhelming. We want to reiterate that we don't care what you do, where you live, how you look...we just want to connect.

My friend Christi (lower left corner) told me that she's decided 2020 will be the year of connection for her. And I really liked that.

We spent the afternoon talking about how our priorities have changed over the years. How our lives aren't about having the biggest house in the nicest neighborhood with the fanciest car. We've lost people - family members, friends, classmates. We're much more interested now in experiences, in making memories.

The older we get, the more we may find ourselves wanting to retreat and avoid people. We spend years in jobs surrounded by people that we may or may not even like being around. We start to believe that a warm dog, a cozy blanket and a downloaded movie is all we need anymore. But then we spend an afternoon with people we love - or even just people who once meant something to us - and we realize that we need more.

We need CONNECTION. It feeds our soul and warms our hearts. Even cold, hardened hearts like mine.