Revisiting the past

Most of them were actually there.

I still recall the goosebumpy feeling. I knew and recognized where ever I turned.

Many of them I haven't seen in 10 years. That is how long it has been, since my class were together. Others I believe not to have seen in the 25 years its been since we parted - they were the ones in the other 9th grade class.

We'd all gotten older - but as we looked in each others eyes and heard each other voices, things happened. We weren't strangers - not really.

My first boyfriend ... how amazing to see him again! Looking just like himself - a bit taller than back then, a bit heavier and a little older - but still just like I remember him, down to the luminant smile and the overactive eyebrows. Still sweet and easygoing.

Present were also old girlfriends, that I drank buckets of tea with, giggled over boys with and grew up with. Seeing them was just pleasant. One is now a daycare mother, and a bit more voluminous than back then - but she was lovely and warm, and we talked so well. Another friend I remained in touch with up until about 10 years ago. Then she and her family moved out of the country and things slipped. Fun to meet her again - she lives in Ringsted now.

And my stampclub-friend .. as expected our tone was just as comforting and warm and easy as it was 10 years ago, the last time we met. It is special to meet a person, that you built clubhouses and played soccer and kick-the-can with, someone you've know through your childhood and teen years and always trusted. He is so like himself - a really pleasant boy!

Before my mentioned first-boyfriend, I had the hugest crush on a sweet, brownhaired, quiet sort of guy in the other 7th grade class. He was just cute - and probably scared witless by the fastmouth blonde, who was really only covering up her insecurety and shyness with her sharp tongue and her reading-acquired knowledge.

He was there as well yesterday, and besides the fact that he is now taller than me, quite gray haired and perhaps a bit heavier than then, he looked just like I remember him! ;-)
Now I finally had the guts to tell him how deeply I sighed for him in the 7th grade - he looked slightly scared (still being that sweet, quiet sort of bloke - just 42 instead of 14) - and then he said that he DEFINATELY never suspected that!

He compensated for the wasted years by dancing with me (several times - and completely voluntarily), and we also talked more last night than we did in the 9 years we went to school together. It was nice to discover, that he was actually as sweet, nice and smart beneath that shy and quiet surface, as I always suspected - maybe my life would have been less complicated, if I'd dared approach him - back then ?? :-)

I could keep going on about one person or another, that I was immensely pleased and touched to meet again. It was nearly unreal, but also undiscribably precious to be handed a piece of my childhood on a silver platter like that. Meeting all these people, that in some way or another had played a role in a long and treasured part of my life - the grade school years.

After the grade school years came high school - and I never felt comfortable there. Too young, too unsophisticated for my surroundings, I bruised myself on them so much, that in the hindsight that comes with age, I probably nursed a minor depression in those years. I wouldn't go through high school again for anything - even though I also met lovely people there.

Grade school was the best part of my childhood. And yesterday, I got a bit of it back.