I am excited and looking forward to attending my 35th year class reunion this summer. Thirty-five years! Wow, I can’t believe it’s been 35 years! What a blessing to reach this milestone in life.
I know that some people dread class reunions. Some do not look forward to them as eagerly as I am. Some were not close to their classmates while in school and they find no reason to go to the reunions. And one of the biggest roadblocks that stand in the way of some attending is that they don’t feel that they have been successful in life, or they feel ashamed about their current place in life. The bottom line is that they compare themselves to their fellow classmates, and in their own minds, they deem that they have fallen short….or…..they do not compare to their classmates.
Well, that’s true. We need to realize that when it comes to others, there indeed is no comparison!
Yet, that thinking is not always easy to grasp. For I as I’m looking forward to our 35th, I was thinking back to our 10th class reunion. We were all still very “young” then….yet, I remember that I felt like I’d remained in the 70’s (1975 – 1979 to be exact). At the time of the reunion, I was 27, and that’s not really young. But, I remember that I felt “out of place”. The silly “boys” had grown up to wonderful and mature men! I was shocked! The beautiful “girls” had grown to even more beautiful women. They had style, grace, and class that I felt I did not have. They all matured. The women even looked more mature. Most had stylish hairstyles and gorgeous clothes. I felt, in comparison, that I fell short! At that point in my life, there was nothing fabulous or glamorous about me (I felt that all of the other women were). I was still wearing my hair in the same style as I did when I graduated 10 years ago. I really did not wear any trendy clothing. I was a true “plain Jane”. I didn’t have a fabulous career or dream job. I was married, yes, but to the same guy who was my prom date, who was (is) the first and only boyfriend I ever had. And, our two children (at that time), were only ages 4 and 2. Many of my classmates had much older children then…..and some were even grandparents!
I compared myself and I saw no comparison, but I erroneously thought that was a bad thing!
So much has happened since that 10th class reunion. I am so thankful that I’ve grown in many ways. I realize that some people at this juncture in life are looking forward to their reunions in order to “show off” and to brag about their accomplishments. And then there are some who are stuck with still feeling ashamed of what they believe is a lack of accomplishments. And then there are those like me. Those who are simply thankful and grateful that they have been blessed to enjoy this 35th reunion! For me, that means that I am simply and uniquely me! I guess I can find a lot of things “wrong” with me, or count the things that I don’t have, or what I haven’t accomplished. But that’s ok! Although I want to “look” good, I am not going to starve myself to lose weight (yep…..I’m dragging my “plump” self there!), I’m not going to do anything drastic to myself to be fashionable and stylish (I will sport whatever “style” I have), I will not embellish and try to make myself sound anymore “grand” than I already am, and I will not hold my head down and avoid eye contact with anybody as one who feels insignificant.
I’m looking forward to this reunion because I’ve learned to REJOICE and be glad! I am glad with the life that God has given me. I rejoice because I am living my life on purpose. I know who I am. I know whose I am. And I know WHY I am. I know my purpose.
I know that some people dread class reunions. Some do not look forward to them as eagerly as I am. Some were not close to their classmates while in school and they find no reason to go to the reunions. And one of the biggest roadblocks that stand in the way of some attending is that they don’t feel that they have been successful in life, or they feel ashamed about their current place in life. The bottom line is that they compare themselves to their fellow classmates, and in their own minds, they deem that they have fallen short….or…..they do not compare to their classmates.
Well, that’s true. We need to realize that when it comes to others, there indeed is no comparison!
Yet, that thinking is not always easy to grasp. For I as I’m looking forward to our 35th, I was thinking back to our 10th class reunion. We were all still very “young” then….yet, I remember that I felt like I’d remained in the 70’s (1975 – 1979 to be exact). At the time of the reunion, I was 27, and that’s not really young. But, I remember that I felt “out of place”. The silly “boys” had grown up to wonderful and mature men! I was shocked! The beautiful “girls” had grown to even more beautiful women. They had style, grace, and class that I felt I did not have. They all matured. The women even looked more mature. Most had stylish hairstyles and gorgeous clothes. I felt, in comparison, that I fell short! At that point in my life, there was nothing fabulous or glamorous about me (I felt that all of the other women were). I was still wearing my hair in the same style as I did when I graduated 10 years ago. I really did not wear any trendy clothing. I was a true “plain Jane”. I didn’t have a fabulous career or dream job. I was married, yes, but to the same guy who was my prom date, who was (is) the first and only boyfriend I ever had. And, our two children (at that time), were only ages 4 and 2. Many of my classmates had much older children then…..and some were even grandparents!
I compared myself and I saw no comparison, but I erroneously thought that was a bad thing!
So much has happened since that 10th class reunion. I am so thankful that I’ve grown in many ways. I realize that some people at this juncture in life are looking forward to their reunions in order to “show off” and to brag about their accomplishments. And then there are some who are stuck with still feeling ashamed of what they believe is a lack of accomplishments. And then there are those like me. Those who are simply thankful and grateful that they have been blessed to enjoy this 35th reunion! For me, that means that I am simply and uniquely me! I guess I can find a lot of things “wrong” with me, or count the things that I don’t have, or what I haven’t accomplished. But that’s ok! Although I want to “look” good, I am not going to starve myself to lose weight (yep…..I’m dragging my “plump” self there!), I’m not going to do anything drastic to myself to be fashionable and stylish (I will sport whatever “style” I have), I will not embellish and try to make myself sound anymore “grand” than I already am, and I will not hold my head down and avoid eye contact with anybody as one who feels insignificant.
I’m looking forward to this reunion because I’ve learned to REJOICE and be glad! I am glad with the life that God has given me. I rejoice because I am living my life on purpose. I know who I am. I know whose I am. And I know WHY I am. I know my purpose.
Carla Y. Nix (McDonogh #35 Senior High School - Class of 1979
Live On Purpose Ministries Founder