Glory Days

Dancing the last dance at the party for our graduation was emotionally mixed. Exciting, yes, however, I knew that this would be the last time I would see many of the people I shared high school with. I had been asked by a couple of friends to go with them to the graduation party, but the fun had just begun. In my small community, everyone knew everyone, especially each of us from the four high schools in the area. We would get together at our part-time jobs, our lunches, and at our house parties. We had initiations in grade nine, but now that would be called 'bullying'. The important thing is that we at every age, stage, and grade got along and supported each other. Through our personal trials, public speeches, air bands such as Janet Jackson, Gun's and Roses, the Rolling Stones, and fashion shows... and our relationships with our teachers, we could derive heart and soul. Whether in a physics class or amassing at a local diner with our math teacher playing guitar, we didn't know how special those days were because we had to grow up.

My father was transferred to work to the south of the province and we had to move. My sister and I were not only terrified but mortified. We took a bus for two hours to drop my sister off at elementary school and then I travelled another half of an hour to get to high school. I often argued that I didn't want to go. It was brutal. All of my friends that I had grown up with were so far away. Without knowing it, we forced our parents' hands, and I was sent to live with my aunt for the second semester of grade nine at high school. My sister was on her way back as well. I cry for what my parents did for us. They had to build a house, establish connections, go to work, deal with our inadequacies, and then shift everything back to town. This guaranteed my sister and my happiness. I was given a locker next to my best friend who grew up with me. My classmates, in grade thirteen, hosted my initiation at the start of the second semester. This was extremely embarrassing but the care that people had for me to do this, to me, was ingenious and lovely. I didn't have the commitment in grade nine to excel in my studies, but having fun and our relationships with each other at the time were much more important. We were all underage drinkers, (maybe not all of us)... but the girls and I would get together on weekends. We sometimes traveled in the "green machine", my best friend's station wagon that had a rusted old hole in the passengers' side of the floor. The car would occasionally catch fire, but it would fit us all comfortably, as we sometimes traveled to the Quebec border. Quebec had a law that allowed a younger age limit for consuming alcohol. They held bonfires and dances and at my best friend's relative's home, we went horseback riding. On each subsequent trip, we made new acquaintances as well as practiced our French language skills.

In grade eleven, we had to get permission slips signed and a sum of money given to our teachers and supervisors to be able to go to Stratford to experience Shakesperian tragedy, history, and comedy in a Festival of Theater. We were able to watch King Lear, A Midsummer's Night's Dream, and The Taming of the Shrew. There were many others and at this point in my life, I realize the opportunity that I had to experience these wonderful plays. Unfortunately, we were in grade eleven and were occasionally clubbed in the head to awaken us from the dreadful bore. In fact, we were there for several days of entertainment but were forbidden to go anywhere away from the sanctity of our hotel rooms. Of course, we hitchhiked through Stratford and met several people our age and rode around in their cars to have fun. Can you imagine how forbidden it was then but how dangerous this behavior is now! So, with no entry to any bar, we returned to the hotel to get more than a scathing reprimand. We were forbidden to leave our rooms. Not a problem, one of the students had gone shopping and had purchased a Ouija Board. We were all packed into the room and full of trepidation about the newly found adventure of the mind. I cuddled on my tummy next to a friend on the end of the bed and I looked on as we continued the seance. A number of spirits presented themselves and moved about the room. Samantha called into our presence, an Egyptian Queen, known as Cleopatra, but the worst experience was when the room grew so silent. All of us in the room erupted in fear as the planchette moved on its own and flung itself off of the board. Just then one of our teachers unlocked the door and spoke to us ending the spooktacular. We had so much to reminisce about on the bus ride back to school.

I was number 01 and I was captain of our volleyball team. We dominated the scene. I was front and center, our setter was on the right, and our hitter (spiker) was on the left. We were literally awesome. The best match we ever had was when we would shift tournaments in and out of town and we were playing outside of our familiar zone. The memory was of a close match but another out-of-town team was cheering us on. They chanted "we will, we will, rock you", by Queen! Step, step, clap! Step, step, clap, etc. The boys basketball team was in the championships and we hosted the game. We applauded and cheered them on... We scored, they scored, they scored we scored. It came to the last two points of the game and someone from the other team scored and then the buzzer! The player from the other team that scored ranted and raved, dancing about the gymnasium. All of our side and in our eyes, we could not in our minds tear him down harder. Tears streamed from our boys' team's eyes. The team's pride could not stand the disappointment. It was a bittersweet moment! I wish that I could have invited the team's heroes, such as Michael Jordan, Larry 'the bird', and the rest of the NBA to a game.

At the graduation party, we celebrated our love of music, dancing, and singing with each other. It was not embarrassing as we had grown up together. For some of us, the party was liberating; however, because of our familiarity with each other, we understood how deeply these bonds were once our adventures to college and university and our proximity and closeness to each other ended. We had been scattered across the country. Fortunately, since our turf had a grand area full of lakes, rivers, and streams, there were three of us who had a cottage on the same lake. Between all three, we were able to gather our graduating class on one lake. In the celebration of "us", we found our ways to each other coming from the different locations on the lakes by boat. We tied all of the boats together in the middle of a lake in front of one friend's cottage. We indulged with a few libations. The most beautiful moments and memories of that night were the Green Lights known as the Aurora Borealis sprawling across the night sky. We would cheer as the green lights exploded and shifted this way and that way creating new and amazing artistry. Occasionally, the green light would mix with that of blue and purple. We spent the night in our boats, tents, and cottages celebrating our friendships and wishing the night would never end.

Stairway to Heaven was our final song at our graduation. Today, Michael is a geologist and Evelyne is a nurse. We have all gone in different directions, but we have that green light of the Aurora Borealis in common. The green light seemed like a symbol to show us that a period of our lives that we were comfortable with was about to change. The green light signaled that the futures that we were anticipating were about to become reality and take flight. Whether it is in the past, present, or future, happiness exists. My time in high school was rare and a little slice of heaven. How nice it is to meet each other unexpectedly and recollect our glory days of high school and that very special night.