Tonight I’m gonna party like it’s 1991
Thursday, 18 August 2011 
9 Comments
Well, the party’s going to be on Saturday actually – it’s been 20 years since I graduated from 9th grade and I’m flying to Estonia to catch up with a lot of people I haven’t seen for TWO DECADES!
If THAT doesn’t make me feel old, I don’t know what will :)
9th grade is sort of a big deal in Estonia, after that is high school for 3 years, but not everyone goes to high school or to the same high school or to the same class in the same high school. After 9th grade you therefore say good-bye to a lot of people you have been in the same class with since year 1.
In Estonia you take the same subjects with your entire class, all the way through to the end of high school and you become very close to your group of 20-something class mates. In my class there was of course a bit of bitching and a bit of bullying, but in general we got along well.
That’s my view from my experience of course. And it’s not because I was popular. For 5 of the 9 years I spent with that class, I was the tag-along best friend of the most popular girl in the class. That meant that just by association my status was somewhat elevated from that of a four eyed dork :) A status I would have had for sure if I hadn’t managed to secure a popular ally.
I don’t really know why she was friends with me, other than it must have been nice to be friends with someone who was no competition to her whatsoever. We did have some genuinely good friendship moments as well, but looking back we were like chalk and cheese and I’m not sure anyone, including us, understood what it was that bound us together like “sukk ja saabas” (a saying that could be translated as “sock and shoe”).
We ended up going to the same high school, but were in different classes and didn’t really hang out from then on. For the last year of high school I disappeared off to America and she disappeared completely off everyone’s radar after high school graduation. I’ve often thought about her, especially since a lot of my old classmates have appeared in FB in the last year or two, but no one knew where she was or what she was up to.
A few months ago I received a friend request from someone I didn’t recognize on FB. The last name didn’t ring a bell with me and the photo was so tiny I had no idea who it was. Only after the second friend request I recognized the girl listed as her sister. The request was indeed my long lost bestie from all those years ago :)
I was genuinely stoked that she had surfaced and looked me up and I can’t wait to see her on Saturday. After 20 years I can talk to her as an equal for I have evolved a lot from my geeky days and no longer feel inferior to the once popular kids.
There are a lot of other people I’m excited about catching up with as well. Many of the girls I’ve seen already during my summer holidays, but I don’t think I’ve seen any of the boys since 1991. I’m very curious to hear what others thought of our years together and what specific memories people have – I’m very bad at remembering specific details, so I’m looking forward to hearing lots of funny stories.
I’m flying back on Sunday already so next week might be a bit of a blur, depending on how “successful” the reunion is :)
How about you? Are you a fan of school/class reunions? Do you hate them? Does time blur all negative feelings you might have had towards your years in secondary or high school?
It was the year 1991
Ah don’t worry, my 30th will be next year! And we are going to have a reunion. It’s interesting how time changes things. I found that most people don’t remember anything bad, just good things, and were just happy to catch up! Have a great time! I’m sure you will. x
I’m hoping that that’s the case – the bad memories fade and only good stories will be shared…
Great post. (again!)
We had our high-school reunion two years ago when it was 15 years since graduation. I couldn’t go as I was not in Estonia and totally happy with that. It gave me the excuse I would have otherwise needed. So reading between the lines – I don’t like reunions and I don’t like old “friends” popping up on FB (that’s also why I’m not on FB). I have some uncomfortable memories from back then and I am glad to be far away…Not to mention that I used to be quite a popular gal myself and had some amazing moments back at high-school. But then things turned sour and I have no wish to open the old wounds.
Thankfully nothing that serious happened to me that I still feel bad about it :) Kids sometimes do stupid things, but surely 20 years later everyone’s grown up.
Mina lõpetasin põhikooli 1995 ja kokkusattumusena on just täna meie esimene kokkutulek. Ootan põnevusega :)
I don’t feel close enough with anybody from my class anymore to make a special fly in trip. Ours (20th) was last year in June. We just visited the country in April. Didn’t have enough motivation to go again so soon.