I don’t know if it’s all these networking sites or the fact that we (30 + crowd) are at an age where we feel the need to reconnect with our youth. But suddenly I am in touch with over a 100, yes over a 100 of my friends from before I was 20 years old. We have all become different people, followed paths we never imagined for ourselves or each other and most of all, most of us are now parents. Monumental changes have taken place and no matter who tries to convince me that we are who we are by the time we are 18 is talking bunkum. We develop way into our 30’s at the most. I just have to look around and notice the nerds who are now millionaires, the bimbos that are brand managers and the intelligentsia that’s gone to hell. As we have found each other, we have gone on to renew friendships and regroup in the cliques of yore. I look at my mailbox and I have been messaging the same 6 girls I was closest to 15 years ago, strange! Yet the surprise has manifested in other ways, the most unexpected acquaintances have more in common with me now than they did over a decade ago. Some of them are in the same profession as me, which is lucrative in its own way and some are doing fantastic things like reform work in Afghanistan and live reportage from the Beijing Olympics.
This landslide of friends has gotten more than my share of reunion invites and though I was apprehensive for the longest time, I have to admit, I attended one and it was fine. I would have loved to handpick the crowd but then I didn’t have that choice 10 years ago, why would I now? So it was a healthy mix of the wackos, the sweeties, the sexies and the rest. I walked in late not because I like to make an appearance (only sometimes!) but because I wanted to make sure I didn’t have to wait for the interesting lot. I stayed for an hour which was another good choice, that way you get just the right dose of nostalgia. I made small talk with everyone, even the ones I didn’t make small talk with before. That’s the strange thing about serious adulthood (30+), you feel obliged to be way more polite than you were in your teens. It’s not cool to ignore after a certain age. In my experience you are likely to need each and every person you ignored for extremely crucial things like passport work, business deals and school admissions. All in all it was a wholesome experience. I felt good for the lot of us.
Friendship is a funny thing, it can be deep but you don’t even have to be in the same country and it can be faint living next door to a friend. However relationships work, everyone needs them. I think the pendulum of social interaction sways from family (as kids) to friends (in your teens) and back to family after 30-35 years. It was nice to remake friend’s, it was easier than meeting new people. I highly recommend a reunion to anyone contemplating hosting or attending one. Some people are actually so much better as grown-ups you are bound to be pleasantly surprised. No doubt old friends are gold but new ones have a lot of glitter. So get off the networking sites, the chats and the sms’s and go out there and meet them. Celebrate your accomplishments with the people that walked part of the path with you. Add a couple of drinks, good food and neutral music and you have the makings of an unforgettable evening. Let me know how it went!
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