High School Daze

I closed my eyes today and I thought I was back in high school...let's see that was 1971 to 1975...to be exact...my high school days were on my mind today...this glorious and sunny fall day...I was celebrating my high school friend's 50th birthday...was it 36 years ago that we first met...how is that possible...and another friend joined us as well...I hadn't seen this friend since high school...more than 32 years since we graduated...32 years...how is that possible I thought to myself, as I drove home from the apple farm where we had gone to pick apples.

We were just like 17 year old school girls...only more mature...and with a few more wrinkles...a few more years of experience behind us...wonder if we ever realized that we would be meeting during our 50th year...that we would still be in touch after all these years...it felt just like the old times...we talked about the guys and gals from our high school days...and I remembered them...yes...I remembered Peter and Nancy...and Stephie and Laura...and Ginny and May...and Marianne and Debbie...I remembered the cool kids...and the smart ones...the ones with the Afros...and the ones with the sideburns...and the parts down the middle...and those who wore aviator tinted glasses...and bell-bottom pants...the quiet ones and the loud ones...the ones who sat in the front of the class and the ones who sat in the back.

I remembered the teachers...the easy teachers and the hard teachers...the young teachers and the older teachers...the new teachers and the more tenured ones...and those special teachers...the teachers that were special because they were such good teachers...or because they were so memorable...like my French teacher who wore a shirt with red hearts all over it...and a red tie on Valentine's Day.

I pulled out my high school yearbook when I arrived home...ooh...ooh...I really didn't look good in high school...didn't like my hairstyle very much...so 70s...let's see...what did it say in my yearbook...oh yes...I was in the Drama Club...I was on the Yearbook staff (I don't remember being on the Yearbook staff)...I was a Rexo Room aide (ah, yes...there were no computers in those days...instead we had to make copies of worksheets using a manual rexo machine that had nasty blue ink that got all over my fingers)...and I was also in Arista...think that was the acronym for the honor society.

Before I put my yearbook back on the shelf...I flipped through more pages to read all the notes that different friends had written...there was one note that stood out from the rest...perhaps because it said exactly what I was feeling on this glorious sunny fall day 30+ years later as I picked apples with my high school friend who was turning 50 today and the other friend who had turned 50 in March...it was from Spyro...wish I remembered Spyro......wonder what happened to Spyro...wonder if he became a writer...he sure had eloquent words to say when he was 18 years old...bet he never realized that his words would ring true three decades later on this glorious October day:

"Happiness is to be with certain friends like you. That is something I will treasure for the rest of my life. For it is worth more than anything else I value."

Judi

Remembering A Mentor

I said I would capture my ups and my downs this year. I had a downer this week when a friend called to say that an old friend and former colleague had passed away. Kit was one of my mentors when I was just starting out in my career more than 20 years ago. She was such a creative person...she cared deeply about her work and even more about the people she worked with - whether they were her colleagues in the office or the editors and reporters she served as a public relations professional. She was always friendly and asked about my children and my husband...with geniune interest...not just for the asking. She complimented me when I did good work. And every year, even after we stopped working together, I always knew there would be a holiday card in the mail from Kit.

As I get older, I think about how lucky I was to have had a mentor like Kit when I was in my 20's. Now it's my turn to be the mentor...to share the wisdom I have learned over the years...to step back and stop the treadmill I'm on...and give back to those younger than me (much younger than me) who are starting out in the business world. It's not easy transitioning into such a role. Does that mean I'm now all grown up??? Even at 49, I think there's a little Peter Pan in me...never wanting to grow up. Maybe that's why I'm having such a tough time transitioning into this mentor role.

When I was younger, I don't think I realized how much I learned from people like Kit and the other talented women who mentored me...I didn't realize the things they said...the questions they asked...the encouragement they provided...impacted my career and even more so the person I would become. I was so busy moving ahead, that I just never really took time to stop and think about all the great things they taught me.

So, as I reflect, I want to say thank you to Kit...while I may not get a holiday card from you this December...memories will remain. I hope I can be as great a mentor to others as you were to me.

Judi

The Best is Yet to Come

I had a wonderful lunch date today with two old friends. It's amazing when I think back to how we met almost 20 years ago. We not only worked together, but we had kids at the same time. We were working moms then and still are today. We spent a bit of time reminiscing about the days when we carried diaper bags and spent more time focused on our children. Each of us has a girl and a boy, so we were comparing notes...what are they doing now, how have they grown, when will the youngest be ready for college, when will we each be empty-nesters?

As we reminisced, our talk turned to the future. One friend turned 50 a few years ago, the other is my age and will be turning 50 in the coming year. We talked about our upcoming trips to Europe...one was going to Prague, Budapest and Vienna...and about my trip to Rome. We chatted about how we were going to maybe look at new careers after we retire. What would retirement look like? We all agreed there would be more time to do more traveling. We thought we each would still want to do some type of work, however exactly what that work would be was totally up to us. How empowering! Whatever the work, there definitely would be less hours devoted to work and more time devoted to do the other things in life that we always wanted to do but never had the time to do when we were younger. One friend even talked about taking off for a month to go live in another country and experience another culture. How exciting!

When I returned to work after our lunch I was inspired. I realized that getting older had its benefits. I started to think about all the things I wanted to do when I retire (yes, I know it is way off and that I'm not even 50 yet), but I have plenty of time to plan. I'll be able to garden again (hopefully I can bend over on my knees), start cooking and baking again (even if I have to watch my weight), start sewing (if I can see the needle hole to thread), entertain more (I'll have more time to invite all my other retired friends over to my house), and have more time to read all the books I have on my "books to read when I retire list."

Yes, while I've had a good life so far, there are so many more great things I want to do...and really, the best is yet to come!

Judi