The long awaited Friday night had arrived. Meade County Class of 1981 assembled in the cafeteria in preparation of the traditional journey down the hill and onto the football field transformed into the pomp and circumstance of a small town high school graduation ceremony. We were a class barely over 300 in number in a county with deep rooted family ties. I was the girl who showed up at the beginning of the 8th grade and had a five year association within this "Greenwave Country". Most of my classmates were able to take their school tales as far back as kindergarten and first grade. As an "Army Brat" I always found this fascinating.
So there we were, donning our caps and gowns and lining up in alphabetical order. We were young and had the rest of our lives ahead of us. Yet we all lost a bit of our innocence during prom weekend with the tragic death of one of our classmates. Little did we know at the time that over the next several years several more of our classmates would remain Forever Young.
For three years, I was the member of the band who ushered the graduating class onto the field of family and well wishers. Now it was my turn. The only way to describe the weather that evening was "perfect". From the procession down the hill, onto the football field, to my seat among the graduates, walking across the stage, receiving my diplomat, shaking Mr. Wilson's hand and turning my tassel, I took it all in.
That was 30 years ago today. A lot has happened in those 10,957 days. But for right now, it seems like it was only yesterday.
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