Songs in the Key of My Life

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Or “What I Learned at My High School Reunion”

By Raymond Tyler

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Nov. 30, 2011

This past Thanksgiving weekend I had the blessing of attending my 25-year high school reunion. There is no way to write about this experience with out sounding sappy, corny or bitter — although I’ve very few bitter feelings between then (1986) and now. However, I will share a few thoughts. Here’s what I learned both from attending Atlantic City High School 25 years ago and during my reunion.

1. Live in the moment — Today, more than ever, I appreciate the miracle of now. The world has become a colder place since 1986 and at times I forget how simple life can be if you take charge. I am glad that I decided I would spend a few hours of my current life with people who, over 25 years, saw me at my best and worse. By choosing to live in the moment, I refuse to be a hostage of the past. I also enjoy the fact that at this moment I am happy and healthy, because my happiness and welfare is not guaranteed tomorrow.

2. People can be amazing if you let them — I am so humbled by the growth and development of my fellow classmates. We are now still-evolving people in full bloom, but still different from the fresh-sprung flowers we were venturing for the first time into the world of adulthood. For example, I have a friend who is an engineer for a major corporation. I proudly tell people he has a 21st century job and he was preparing for the 21st century back in the 1980s. He’s one of a few people who are my heroes now. Not because of how fast they run or how popular they are, but because they have worked hard and carved out great lives for themselves and their families.

3. Music on my mind — Like every generation that attends high school, we enjoy(ed) the music of our era. Now was our music the best ever? Maybe not. However, we had the song “Friends” by Whodini, the Thriller album by Michael Jackson, the first three Run DMC albums, the first years of MTV, Doug. E Fresh’s “The Show,” Prince’s “Purple Rain,” Whitney Houston’s first album ... You know, maybe we did have the best music! One real quick thing as well, not long after the release of Stevie Wonder’s LP My Original Musiquarium, he paid a visit to our high school.

4. Forgive — Forgive every rotten thing every 17- or 18-year-old person has ever done. Normally I am not a big fan of excusing actions done on purpose or with malice, however, as the water goes underneath the bridge, it tends to carry away the “importance” of the negative stuff. The garbage will only stay with you as long as you allow yourself to hold on to it. Forgive the insensitive jock, the girl who got away, the teacher who couldn’t teach but flunked you. Most importantly, forgive yourself. None of us were quite the people we wanted to be at that time. Today offers us the perfect opportunity to be whatever you would like to be, and moving forward.

I had more fun than I have had in the past 10 years at my reunion. I had recently quibbled, “Nobody I went to school with wants to see Raymond Tyler, and there are only a few people I really want to see.” How wrong I was on every count. I can say I missed everyone who didn’t make it. I sorely miss those fellow students who passed away. It was such a blessing to see everyone I knew — even those I couldn’t quite remember or couldn’t quite remembered me.