NCSU-CVM 20th Reunion- going Back.

You can't go Back. Back just won't have you. If you stay, the changes are subtle and gradual, and they are assimilated. But if you leave, going Back is a jolt to your system, connections are lost- place isn't quite the same.
Still, it is an exercise in memory and sense to try going Back. Some things will spark a memory, other things are just confusing. Huz and I attempted Back last weekend. Back to where we met- Raleigh, N.C. And, a few things looked familiar, a few things sounded familiar, but nothing felt familiar.

I moved to Raleigh, N.C. in 1988. I left the area after the birth of Eldest in 1995. They were busy years for me. Objectively, I obtained a career, a husband and started my family. But the reason I landed in Raleigh was the career. I wanted to go to Veterinary School. This I had decided at age 12. It was an unflagging certainty that never waned, and for that I am grateful. It is easier to get somewhere when you are driven. I had started my higher ed at University of Richmond, where I collected some of the greatest friends in the great, great world. But, not even leaving them could sway me from my vet school goal. So, I transferred to North Carolina State University, the home of the Veterinary School which I had set my sights upon. I was in Great Britain for the summer months, so returned to the states to a packed "U Haul" (my mother had been busy at summer garage sales in prep for me setting up my first home) and drove to the unknown in Raleigh. While I was "across the pond" a friend of my mother's had picked out an apartment for me, and there I went. To Ivy Commons. It had air conditioning- which I didn't use, because at $350/month the rent was a stretch! That year I found friends, Mereth and Shila in quick succession, and the Dean's List. Aiko the cat shared my apartment- perhaps illegally.
My life got bigger as I moved to Bloodworth St. in downtown with Shila, acquired a dog, Randleigh, and a job milking cows.
My 1st year Vet School class was a tidy one. We may not have been conflict-free ( I did get punched in the kisser by a classmate-betcha can't wait to hear that story) but for the most part we were a tight, friendly group. We supported one another, cheered each other on, and someone had your back. I didn't feel there was jockeying for top rank- but perhaps that's because I wasn't in that horse race. For the most part, my class was inhabited by 70ish people I genuinely liked. And, I loved some too!

You can't go back. Raleigh has changed. For one, Huz and I stayed at the Bed and Breakfast down the street from my old house on Bloodworth Street, and we walked around the neighborhood. At night.
But here's what hasn't changed; the bond. It only takes minutes, when back in the embrace of a friend, to be exactly where we left off- the passage of time erases, and I wonder why I don't see these friends more often. I have been so fortunate in my life to have found such wonderful friendships. I may have exceeded my quota. But, darn if I don't want to be greedy and enjoy each one regularly.
20 years was too long. 5 is too, but I'll take it. Here's to hoping for a 25th Vet School Reunion! 
See Y'all soon!

DDK and me...now. I had forgotten how little she was until I went to hug her and put my chest in her face. So...I crouched down for a picture!

DDK and me....then. With classmate Kim as "hear no evil". I love this picture for a few reasons. We "dressed" for a party. I had a fancy party. And, check out that fireplace! Not typical college digs. It may have not been the safest place to live, but it was a great house.

This is the house, now. I have to say, when Shila and I lived here, it looked a LOT more "homey". Shila always had an abundance of plants and flowers, hanging baskets and color. We had a porch swing full of pillows, and a garden blooming with perennials. The house, then, was painted a drab yellow, so this is an improvement, but when we lived there it looked loved.

Here are some of my vet school chums having supper on the front steps of Bloodworth Street. I love this picture for another whole set of reasons. Catfish is in it, and we all miss him. The girls are all in panty hose. And, even though we hosted this party for my entire class, and dates, we still had enough china, flatware and crystal. Not one paper plate or plastic fork. Never doubt my deep seated addiction to tableware.

This was 1991. Per usual, Spidey is buried in girls. 

 

Re-creation of the photo, 23 years later. How I have missed these friends! Ladue couldn't be here for the reunion, so Deanna took her place (less blonde, less tall, but it works!)

Oh boy.