Tomorrow is the 40th Reunion of the Nolan Catholic High School Class of ’78. On one hand, it’s hard to believe four decades have come and gone since 172 students walked across the Will Rogers Auditorium stage in Fort Worth and received our diplomas. Then again, a lot happened during those 14,600 days.
Marriages, children, career changes, divorces, second chances, walking daughters down the aisle and witnessing sons taking brides. Joy, heartache, discovery, disappointment, lessons learned, restarts and success. New friends, lost loved ones, estrangements, reconciliations, missteps, perseverance and hope.
In a small class everybody knew everybody. At our 10-year, conversations centered around a decade of achievements. At 20, discussions focused on kids’ activities. At 30, photos were shared of new grand kids.
My guess is the 40th will be a celebration of togetherness – with a deep understanding that these decade-apart moments are a special pause on the timeline of life. Six of our classmates have passed away… and next time the number will be higher, so each gathering is a gift.
During our nine months together, “Star Wars” and “Saturday Night Fever” were in theaters, Billy Joel released “The Stranger,” J.R. Ewing debuted on TV, the hometown Cowboys captured the Super Bowl, and we won the state championship in basketball.
Seems we chose the right class motto as freshmen: “78 is Great”
