Old Friends

There’s nothing quite like the feeling of reconnecting with old friends. Such was the case this past Tuesday, when I met up for the first time with five of my elementary school classmates.

I have never attended a high school or college reunion, but this mini reunion of six girls who were together at Walden School in New York City until 1970 was indeed something to remember. It was prompted by my deciding to contact my then best friend, Rachel Christmas (her real name). We met this past September at her recently renovated house on a historic landmark street in Harlem. Sitting on a comfortable couch in her large kitchen and surrounded by artifacts acquired through her overseas trips as a travel writer, we reminisced about old times, while Rachel prepared us a frittata for lunch. Afterwards, she contacted a few of our fellow classmates via Facebook and we chose a date when we could all meet in Manhattan.

From the moment we agreed to the rendez-vous, I could not stop thinking about what it would feel like to see these individuals, all of whom had once been my whole world. Would we know what to say to one another?

And then it happened. How can I express my joy at seeing faces from the past who are now 43 years older? We have all aged remarkably well, though I’m the first to admit that I would never have recognized a few of them, had I bumped into them on the street.

Susan Dresner’s 7th Grade, 1970

Walden Reunion

What makes me so happy is knowing it’s still possible to rekindle relationships long forgotten, even from so many decades ago. We’ve all turned out to be successful as parents, and, with one exception, have all taken professional career paths. I hope we will stay in touch a little more often.