Sharing Memories

On Saturday, May second, thirty friends from three Alhambra grammar schools met at our house in Dana Point to renew old friendships and share memories, fifty-five years after we graduated from eighth grade together.

Not everyone who attended is shown in the photo. A couple arrived late, two left early, and a few others didn’t want to be in the picture.

I hadn’t seen one of the guys since sixth grade. He moved away in the seventh, but I was able to track him down. I’d stayed in touch with several over the years, and I’d found more of them last year when preparing for my high school fiftieth reunion. But this fellow wanted to reconnect with several of his friends—and he did.

One unexpected benefit was the mini-reunion of my husband and two of the guys he graduated from high school with. They were all two years ahead of the rest of us, but they competed in track and field together, so they had many shared memories and mutual friends. One was the older brother of an attendee, and the other was a husband.

Olamendi’s Mexican Restaurant in Capistrano Beach provided the fabulous food: pollo verde (chicken in green sauce), beef in red sauce, and fish in white sauce. I’m not a great fish fan, but this was incredible. Along with the meat, they brought tostada shells (bowls and flat), soft corn tortillas, beans, rice, shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, and (as if that weren’t enough), lots of fresh tortilla chips with huge bowls of fresh, hand-made guacamole and salsa. They als o sent their delicious dessert “Raquelitos”: flour tortilla pockets filled with pineapple, deep fried, and covered with cinnamon sugar. Yumm!

A couple of people brought additional salads, chips, drinks, and desserts. No one went home hungry! In fact, we packed large bags of food for several to take home. We took a few desserts to church the next day, and we still had far too much left. So we’ve invited friends for lunch nearly every day to use it up. The food was far too good to waste!

Some people live fairly close, but a few traveled long distances to attend—from Oregon, Northern California, Nevada, and Missouri!

Several of us shared our grammar school photos and compared how we looked as kids with how we look now. We’ve held up pretty well!

During the afternoon, laughter echoed through the yard as a few people (mostly the guys) told tall tales. As he left, one of them said, “It felt like we were right back in fifth grade again.”

Although the event ended far too soon, plans are already underfoot for the next get-together.

Some of us gals got together near the end for one last photo of our feet. Mine’s the bare ‘baby’ one on the left. The shot shows the diversity as well as the closeness we share. Amazing! After fifty-five years, friendships endure and memories remain fresh.

Have you ever attended a grammar school reunion? Did you recognize each other? What surprised you?