Here's The Story Of the Sixty-Nine Year Reunion

 That reunion was this weekend. I missed the Thursday luncheon because of miscommunication. But there were only seven people there. I thought I might attend a gathering Saturday but that was relocated to an expensive venue I don't like at all. So I thought I would show up before the banquet tonight and take photos of people mingling. Mingling and trading stories has always been a big part of these reunions. But even though I arrived at the Elegante Hotel well after the lunch, around 2:30 PM, there was no one. I found the banquet hall, and it had only a few tables.  Nobody there. I roamed around trying to find someone, some member of the class, doing what they would normally do, talking, mingling, telling stories but there was NOBODY. So I photographed the empty banquet room and went to the Atrium, where, in the past, so many would be gathered. Of course the Atrium was empty as well. So sad. I had pleasant memories of what had gone before, but, clearly the past eleven years have decimated the LHS Class of 1955. The 2013 Reunion was the first one I attended and it was great! I loved being there and being part of it with my wife!  But this time it was very sad for me. Even combining with the class of 1956 didn't flesh this reunion out. Nobody arrived from out of town, but that makes sense because of the difficulty in traveling for people in their mid to late eighties. At some point I will add the photos I took of ghosts and memories, of empty spaces. Right now those empty spaces are sitting in my camera. For me this reunion was a total bust but I can't see how it could have been otherwise. A 69 year lapse of time since the 1955 graduation is bound to bring many, many, profound changes, and I sincerely hope that another reunion will not be planned. It would be insane, in my opinion. A total denial of reality. I want to remember what it used to be like. I want to remember the reunions I attended with my wife. If there's another one (surely not!) I don't want to hear about it. I will not even attempt to document it. The end. Over.  This post will be edited at some point and the dismal photos will be posted.