the class of 1977

quiet little girl
who liked books best
shy and insecure
just wanted to be accepted
and liked.

it didn't take much to make her cry
but she never let them see it.
the butterflies in her tummy
were from fear, not excitement
and when other kids laughed
at her and her clothes
she knew, she KNEW
they were laughing at her.

she developed thicker skin
as she got older
and a sense of humor;
be a clown and that way
be more in control of why people laugh.

but books were still her BFF.

grade school, high school
such a difference
the lines were clearer
who is popular
who is not.
if a boy walks with you in the hallway and he is one of the 'in' ones
it could change your life.

the clown got braver
'if you don't like my peaches, don't shake my tree'
love me or hate me
but let me be.

she buried herself in her writing.

she had her circle of friends but she was always looking
looking over at the other circles
the ones with the pretty girls and boys
cheerleaders, prom queens, studs.
ached to be liked, ached to belong.
never suspecting they each carried their own insecure demons.

class reunions, over the years
did nothing to erase the lines of division
that she felt each day in school.
until this one....

this one we finally got it right.
we are not prom queens or cheerleaders or football stars
we are not losers or deadbeats or drop outs
we're not the girl who got knocked up
the boy who got busted for drinking
or the one we suspected was gay.

we are simply..... people.
all the same age, with a journey through life
that has taken twists and turns,
some ugly and some not.

we've faced cancer and divorce
DUI's and custody battles
we've moved and graduated and been fired and been beaten.
we've battled addictions and some times we've won and sometimes we've lost.
but we are still just people.

we've had promotions and raised families
switched careers, taken trips.
built houses, built businesses
found religion, found God.
increased our faith, been tested.

We've been celebrating life.
crossing lines because they don't matter anymore.
as they never should have existed.

we are the class of 1977.