Class reunions always involve treacherous terrain. At my 10th undergraduate reunion I had an unfortunate encounter with my ex boyfriend. We had unfinished business. That encounter finished it. I never saw him again.
The most recent reunion was my 55th. A friend had lobbied the University administration to provide us with a room on campus. I decided to go to support this classmate's success. Her husband had been our class President. He was a fantastic class president. He had a great future. Alas, somewhere along the way he ended up in Federal prison for student loan fraud at a proprietary vocational school where he worked. Two years. But I digress.
Ten years ago, our 45th reunion Friday night event occurred at an off campus site in downtown DC. The room was hot and crowded. Impossible to get a drink. My husband didn't come with me. I convinced a friend to go with me and we took the Metro down from her house. Most of those attending were women dragging compliant husbands. Only one man was there - Matt. I remembered Matt from school but didn't know him well. He was one of those friendly cute guys. He had been in the same fraternity as a guy, Bill, who married my best friend,. I introduced Bill and my friend. They married, had three kids and divorced. I was Godmother to their first child. We drifted apart.
At that 45th reunion, stuffed into an overheated room, Matt and I spoke as he circled the room. He was a lawyer in Richmond. Private practice. He had that Lawyer in Richmond look. Something about that Southern gene pool. He was still cute. I asked him if he remembered Bill, his fraternity brother. My friend Bill's ex wife had died by that time. No, he didn't remember Bill.
Certain events in our lives stand out while others recede. I remember that night at our 45th reunion.The oppressive heat. The crowded room. Several of us trickled outside where it was cooler. Matt left.
Life goes on but finding Bill periodically consumed me. I goggled. Nothing. I asked fellow classmates but no one had any information. How does someone disappear? My husband was peripherally involved in the search for Bill because he knew him from when we were all first married. I must have told my husband about meeting Matt at the 45th reunion and asking him about Bill.
Back to the 55th reunion in the comfortable room the University provided us this time around. After dinner, my husband and I separated, each of us talking to different groups. I ended up sharing stories with our Class President, the ex felon. We had many laughs and didn't notice the place was closing down, caterers packing up. Then my husband interrupted us triumphantly, a befuddled man in tow. Mari, here's Matt.
Ten years had not been kind to Matt. He was again alone. He couldn't remember me and couldn't figure out why my husband dragged him over. It was pretty damned awkward. Hi Matt, I said, do you still live in Richmond? He eyed me suspiciously. How do you know that, he asked? Oh we were talking at the class reunion 10 years ago. Do you still practice law?. He started warming up. I reminded him we had been talking about Bill. By way of explanation, I said I have been wondering what happened to him. He married a friend. He was in your fraternity.
A small group of us walked out to our cars. Matt muttered, mostly to himself, Bill, Bill. Oh yes, he said, I get our old fraternity newsletter. I seem to remember someone by that name died three weeks ago,
He was right. I found the Obit on line. No family information. I wrote something nice on the tribute page. Only one other person had written anything.
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