Category: Blog

I looked at the calendar and realized school is about to begin soon. As the almost-40 parent of none, the commencement of the new school year means little outside of traffic patterns in the Greater Wilmington, NC area changing with the onset of school bus routes resuming. Nostalgia doesn’t hit me as hard as it did when I lived in Pennsylvania. North Carolina doesn’t quite have the Appalachian chill in the air that says “football season is upon us,” or “time to collect wood for the bonfire.” In fact, I’m looking at the thermometer, and it’s almost 80 degrees fahrenheit. It’s been quite a while since I stepped out my front door and been reminded of the first day of classes.

Upon further inspection of the calendar, I realize that it has been twenty years since I’ve graduated high school. To date, I haven’t heard anything about a reunion, but I can’t tell you that I’d go—not yet, anyways. There is a lot more living I want to do before I go see those men and women again. I want to be able to go back and tell stories of an authentic life worth living. I want to be able to celebrate their lives, in earnest, not feeling like I’ve missed out on any of mine. Simultaneously, I don’t want to discredit anything I’ve done, either. I only want to go back to the Moshannon Valley Junior-Senior High School with a heart full of things I would have never imagined I’d see while living in Clearfield County.

For this week’s blog, and specifically for my own benefit (if I’m struggling to think about what I’ve done approaching the thirty-year anniversary since leaving high school), I wanted to do a “Where is he now?” to compare myself now, to who I was.