In many ways, a high school reunion provides a very good measuring stick for how well we have embraced and exhibited life's best lessons. More than anything else, the high school reunion provides each alumnus a channel for speaking about the current mission and values of his or her Alma Mater, and a way to comment on what has changed, for better or for worse. In a democratic society, the voice of the people is always the best voice.
As we stroll across our campuses, or run with open arms as the younger folks do to embrace one another, we soon find ourselves launching into stories and conversations about the people we are now, where we have been for the past five, ten or fifty years, and what we are doing with our lives. Fred is a counselor, spiritual mentor and community organizer in Wisconsin. Whit is a bride, mother, and publisher of motivational materials in Virginia. David is media specialist and translator of books in Kansas City.
While we have chosen different paths, we share a common purpose: We were once confused teenagers, troubled by moral questions and rebellious attitudes. We struggled to make sense out of these questions while living together in educational communities based on progressive values and intellectual curiosity.
Our lives are connected to our schools because they were institutions that pointed us in the way of peace, love and service. At their best, our high schools never rested on their foundational pillars of faith and reason, but relied on the power of the human spirit to put this faith into action. We believed that God’s love and the human intellect would transform young students like Fred, Whit and David into mature citizens who would make a difference in the world. And it worked!
But coming back for reunion is not easy. Jesus as much as said so when he returned to his own home town of Nazareth. It was uncomfortable for him, and he did not feel welcomed there. That is why he spent so much of his teaching ministry in Capernaum, on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. There, amidst a conflagration of cultures, active urbanization, and suppressed political resentment, Jesus chose to spread a message of kindness and forgiveness.
Forgiveness. The person we once were certainly has it. The person we are now welcomes it. The person we will be, must show it. That is the example Jesus would have us follow. Forgiveness will bring peace to the world sooner than force.
My own son, now a teacher, said to me the other day, “Dad, 'unioning' is easy; it is the 're-unioning' that is hard." I think I get what he means: It is much easier to make a new friend in a new community than to confront, as Jesus did, those who scratch their heads and say, “Hey, isn’t that Jesus, the carpenter’s son, the kid who ran off without telling his parents where he was going?” Most of us would rather not confront the adolescent nincompoop we sometimes were. We just don't want to go there.
Our younger selves did not always think before acting, and we were hesitant, or too self absorbed, to accept responsibility. We thought it was funny to tell off-color jokes. For reasons we are not entirely sure of we used labels like "nigger," "spic," "fag," and "wop" to imagine that we would find popularity among the "in crowd." Even when we knew that the leaders at recess were bullies, mean girls, or simply half-baked idiots with attitudes, we reasoned that it was better to belong to something than to be left out. We cursed our parents and teachers. We complained about the rules and the food. We did not choose to do those things which we ought to have done, and we did those things which we ought not to have done, and there was little health in us.
Reunioning is hard because it makes us aware of our need for forgiveness. Fortunately, when we are back at our schools, laughing and joking with old friends, we are reminded of the transformative power of love and faith. Listening to each other, we are inspired to be better and to believe in something greater than ourselves.
Tad Roach, headmaster of an Episcopal school in Delaware, observes that, “we come closest to our mission when we extend ourselves collectively or individually for those in need, when we display courage, resilience, creativity and commitment, when we open ourselves to recognitions that change and transform us.”
These words must become actions through us. Our school administrators need to hear from us. They need to know that we are watching and that we get angry when our schools water down their curricula or back away from the core values that were put into place so that we might become responsible citizens, willing to do whatever it takes to create a better world.
If we live by faith, we know that we do not really need God’s forgiveness. God has already forgiven us. What we rightfully do ask is that our hearts be opened to the possibilities that await us as a result of the reconnections we make at events like high school reunions. There, in those spiritual homes of our youth, we ask God to rekindle our passions, and to bind us to the promises we made to our classmates, teachers, cooks, coaches, counselors, nurses, shop teachers, spiritual advisers, parents and friends.
Most of all, we remember classmates who fought the good fight, who once stood beside us as we competed and performed, who will forever stand with us in our class and team photos. Because they are no longer with us, we must stand for those who have gone to greater glory having lived out the lessons that were taught in every homeroom, classroom, studio, and playing field.
May God continue to bless and support our high schools, and may God bless and protect each and every one of us who musters the courage to visit and reconnect with his or her best self at a high school reunion. Together we can create the inspiration and courage to call our schools back to their core values, celebrate what was meaningful and transformational in our lives, and offer hope that future generations might find purpose and direction in their lives.
As this country strives to recreate its educational mission and rebuild its educational system, it looks to us for direction, evaluation and honest feedback. We must raise our collective voices in support of a first rate education for every person, and we can't rest until every person has access to that first rate education. To this end, we pray with the Psalmist: Lead us, O LORD, and in your righteousness make our ways straight before us.
