The Palmer-nator walked back to Ray’s desk before he had a chance to stash his work. She grabbed it and held it up for everyone to see. It was a sketch of her. Ray slid as far down in his seat as he could. It was the last time he drew in her class. I always thought that Ray drew because it was his way of expressing himself. I wonder if he still draws.
Diane (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To a funny, hilarious, and extremely rib-killing person. No matter where you are you bring a smile to everyone’s face. You also bring tears to their eyes!! I’ll never forget the time you told us about having to fart during your violin recital!
Diane
..........................
So for the rest of my life Diane is going to remember me as the-girl-who-had-to-fart-during-her-violin-recital. Yeah, well, it did happen. I tried to cover it up by playing louder, but it didn’t matter. It was one of the most embarrassing moments of my junior high life. Here I was playing the theme from Romeo and Juliet, a piece that I had practiced for months, and farted right in the middle of it. Thank gawd no one said a word. In fact, they acted like they never heard it, which I’m sure they did.
Diane played the tuba, and if you ever saw her 4-foot, 7-inch self carrying that brass beast you’d laugh. Picture Toto hauling the Tin Man. I remember how her parents tried to talk her into playing another instrument, something smaller, like a flute or clarinet, but she refused. Good thing, too, because the tuba took her far.
She got a music scholarship and after earning her teaching degree replaced the band director at our high school. I heard Mr. Mummert was going to retire earlier but really wanted Diane to get the job and waited until she graduated to give her a chance. She did her student teaching under him and was really excited about teaching in the school that she graduated from.
Diane married a trumpet player. One of my good friends, Cookie, who attended their wedding, told me it was music themed. A small tuba and trumpet topped the cake. Each table was named after a favorite song. The place cards looked like concert tickets with the guests’ names on them and sheet music was scattered on the tables. Each guest also received a music notes keychain.
I quit the violin when I got to high school. There were so many other things I wanted to try. I still have it, though. Every once in awhile, I get it out. The A string is missing and the bow needs to be re-haired. My cake of rosin is worn down the middle from years of rubbing it up and down my bow.
I wish I would have stuck with it. Why is it that when we give up something it’s so hard to get it back?
Peter (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To a really nice girl I met in homeroom. Take care.
Peter
..........................
I’m just going to say it. Peter creeped me out. It seemed like he was always watching me. I’d catch him staring at me in homeroom or in the hallway. His locker was down from mine.
When he asked to sign my yearbook, I didn’t want to be a snob and say no. But I was glad he didn’t write much.
No one has ever made me feel so uncomfortable. I was never afraid of Peter. It’s not like I thought he would hurt me. His stares were more of a longing – like he wanted to be with me in a way I would never want to be with him. Infatuation, I guess. A secret admirer, only he wasn’t as secret as he thought.
I told Mike about the staring once, and he wanted to set Peter straight. I told him to let it go. It wasn’t that big of a deal. But I think he had a talk with Peter anyway because the last month of our senior year, I didn’t catch Peter staring quite so much.
Cookie (Yearbook post)
Gina,
You’re a crazy, crazy girl and we shared so many laughs together this year. I’ll miss ya next year. Thanks for always sharing your orange gum and never forget all of the wild times at Jeremy’s house! I’m sure you’ll be a success and I’ll try to keep in touch.
Love, Cookie
..........................
Funny that Amy – we called her Cookie – thought I was crazy. She was the crazy one. What I liked most about her is that she blazed her own path. Some days, she’d come to school dressed in the wackiest stuff, liked multicolored striped socks with a hounds tooth skirt and stripped shirt. It would look totally ridiculous on me, but on Cookie, it looked perfect.
I admired her for her spirit, and I always wished I could be more like her. Cookie never worried about what others thought of her. She was comfortable in her skin. And confident. Some of my girlfriends made fun of Cookie. But I think deep inside they wished they could be more like her.
It didn’t surprise me when Mom sent me a newspaper clipping about a local school district banning some books for sexually explicit content and offensive language and violence. Leading the opposition to the ban was Cookie.
“Where does the censorship end?” she was quoted as saying in the newspaper article.
That was Cookie. Always standing up for what she believed in, even if was the unpopular thing to do.
Mom asked me how Amy got the nickname Cookie. It started in first grade. She always brought her lunch and every day it included Oreo cookies. So we started to call her Cookie.
Some days, if she wasn’t really hungry, she'd auction off her cookies. I learned to always have a nickel or two in my pocket just in case.
Cookie’s the one who taught me how to eat Oreos to get the most out of them. She’d pull the cookie apart, scrap the crème off with her two front teeth and then eat the chocolate wafers. I asked her once why she didn’t lick off the icing. She said it made her tongue tired, especially if they were double-stuffed.
Robby, who always sat with us at lunch, ate his cookie whole. He liked to taste everything together. She told him she thought that was lame. That eating Oreos wasn’t something to be rushed, but enjoyed.
Funny the things you remember. I hadn’t thought about our Oreo eating in decades.
Margaret (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To one of my dearest friends that I love very much. Always think of me as a friend and remember that I’m here if you need me. Never forget all the good times we had. Good luck in everything you do, and take care of Mike. When I look at you, I realize that you are aggressive and you’ll go far. Remember me always,
Luv ya, Maggie
..........................
I never thought of myself as aggressive, but I guess I am. I wonder if that’s a bad thing. Maybe yes and maybe no. Guess it depends on the situation. I think it’s worked well for me most of my life, but there was at least one time when being too aggressive cost me a friend.
Maggie was more of a follower than a leader. She was content to stand in the stage wings and let others bask in the spotlight. I used to get so mad at her for letting others take credit for her ideas. I told her it was like working your ass off to lose 20 pounds and then continuing to wear huge shirts – no one will notice the results of all your hard work. She always said that it didn’t matter. That she knew and that was good enough.
Today, Maggie is definitely not in anyone’s shadows. Although every chance she gets, she steps aside and lets those who work for her bathe in the glory. After finishing college, she started working in the textile industry and climbed to the top, eventually becoming general manager and vice president of Dye Works Inc. She chairs the board of directors of the local hospital and Mom has sent me newspaper clippings over the years about her receiving awards for her charitable work.
Knowing Maggie, I’m sure she is embarrassed by the accolades.
Ellen (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To a great friend. You’re always there to help and listen to me whenever I'm down. You've brought me back to earth many times, and I'm very grateful for that. So if there is ever a time when you need help, don’t forget that I'm here. Next year you’ll be going off to college. Our gang will be spread apart. I hope we keep in touch by writing to each other and visiting.
I’m looking forward to
spending a weekend at college with you. There are so many things that we all have to experience yet. I hope that you and Mike will keep that great relationship you two have. I think you have finally found a love that is good and true and I can see what he does for you.
Never forget all of the fun times that we shared these past four years. I hope there are many more to come. Good luck with everything you do and keep in touch over the summer. I’ll see you at the prom,
Love, El
..........................
Ellen was right about one thing, after high school we all went in different directions. We kept in touch the first year, but then we started to drift apart.
The things that bound us together in high school no longer existed. We didn’t cheer together. We weren’t class officers. We weren’t in the senior class play or planning social events for the student body. We were no longer the big fishes in a little pond but little fishes in very big ponds – and the ponds were worlds apart.
I had thought our friendship meant more, and I’m mad that I didn’t do more to keep it intact. Guess you always think there’s time to catch up and make things right, and then time runs out.
After high school, Ellen went to culinary school. I wonder if she’s cooking at some Five-star restaurant like she dreamed she would.
Becky (Yearbook post)
Gina,
Well, I believe you know what I have to say. I have so much to tell you but I’m not a very good writer. But I’ll try my best. Sorry for being such a bitch this year but I had problems. Thank you for standing by me and for understanding. I sure do hope that you get everything out of life because you deserve it. But I don’t have to worry about that because I know you will go after what you want and not stop for anything. If you ever need me to support you or back you up for anything, you know I will be there.
Love, Becky
..........................
Becky was a bitch our senior year. But only the second half. It started after Christmas break. I think something happened when she went to visit her older brother in Chicago. She left the day after Christmas and spent the week with him, including New Year’s Eve. I tried talking to her about it every now and then, but that just made her bitchier.
Finally, a week or two before graduation, she seemed to come around. Whatever she was pissed about, whatever happened I guess she made peace with it. I was glad to have the old Becky back. As much as I always tried to support her, even I was getting tired of her whiny, bitchy self.
Becky went into the Air Force right after high school, and I’m sad to say we lost touch. Mom sent me a newspaper clipping when she finished basic training. There was a photo of Becky. I remember the photo because she wasn’t smiling, and Becky always had the most beautiful smile.
Lynn (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To a really terrific girl that I’ve known practically all of my life. Remember all the fun in student council and all of Mr. Flannigan’s “speeches.” Of course, don’t forget all the work we put into making the prom a hit. I’m glad we have stayed friends all of these years, and I hope that we will always be friends. If you ever need me to plan anything for you, let me know.
Love, Lynn
..........................
Lynn was always a great planner. Very organized and detail oriented. She made a great class president, an office we had to beg her to go for because no one else in our group wanted all of the responsibilities. And, to be honest, none of us was as good as Lynn at planning and making sure things got done.
It didn’t surprise me that she became an events planner for a swanky country club in Massachusetts. I always thought that if I needed a wedding planner, I’d want Lynn.
When we planned the prom, she kept everyone on task and focused. She thought of details that the rest of us hadn’t given any thought to – like the order of the people in the receiving line. That’s how she was; she left nothing to chance. Every decision was backed up with sound reasoning and she always had a Plan B. Her obsessing drove me a little crazy at times, but she made everything she was a part of better.
Joe (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To the one girl who I think has the best personality out of anybody I know. Always keep those good looks and special smile. I wish you luck at anything you try to accomplish in the future. You are very special to me as a friend.
Take care, Joe
..........................
I’ve never see anyone battle drugs like Joe. He started drinking heavily our junior year in high school and then got into pot and other stuff. I liked Joe. I always tried to talk to him about what was going on. I knew he was in trouble. He always said that he could handle it and that he could quit anytime he wanted. We both knew that wasn’t true.
I watched as his smiling eyes turned into a blank stare. As he lost weight and stopped caring about his appearance. As he started skipping school and his grades plummeted. Looking back, I’m surprised he graduated.
Watching Joe was like watching a fly become ensnared in a spider’s web. I wanted to rescue him, but I didn’t know how.
He called me one night when I was in college. He was crying and saying things that didn’t make any sense. Eventually, he hit rock bottom. Ended up in a ditch, then the hospital and then rehab.
Joe tells his story over and over to high school students and anyone else who will listen. He made it out of that sticky web, but it wasn’t easy. He would tell you that drugs are a demon he battles every day.
I often wonder what would have happened if Joe didn’t have the support of his family and friends.
Today, he's married to a wonderful woman who, like him, counsels drug addicts.
It’s good to see Joe’s smiling eyes, and it’s good to see wrinkles hug the outer corners. As the years pass and the wrinkles appear, it means he’s beating the demon – one day at a time.
Bill (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To a very special girl that I think about a lot and I will never forget you as long as I live. I have many memories about you that I wouldn’t trade for the world, and I’m sure you have some memories too and I hope you never forget them. You made this past summer something very special and something to always remember and I want to thank you for that. I’m sorry what we had together had to end but it seems like it’s been for the best. I’m really glad that you and Mike found each other and I hope your relationship always lasts. I don’t know Mike very well but it seems like you two were made for each other and I’m really happy for you. You deserve the very best that life has to offer and I hope you always get it. Best wishes and please take good care of yourself.
Love, Bill
..........................
I dated Bill the summer before I started dating Mike. I learned how to make out and French kiss hard and deep. We never went the whole way. We were both too scared. And while we knew we liked each other a lot, maybe not quite enough to go that far. So we had a summer romance filled with fun days and steamy nights.
I was the one who broke it off. School started and we weren’t spending as much time together, and I realized that I didn’t care that we weren’t spending as much time together. And then I started to look at Mike and, well, it was only a matter of time.
Just being near Mike made my heart tingle. It never tingled with Bill. And then one day Bill came around the corner at school and saw me talking to Mike. Later that day, he mentioned it and said how I had a smile on my face that he had never seen before. He told me that he wished I had smiled at him like that. That was the day I broke up with him. I think we both knew it was coming. The summer was over.
Keith (Yearbook post)
Gina,
To a really sweet girl who has a nice personality. Keep up the good looks and keep working hard and you’ll go far. See you over the summer.
Love, Keith
..........................
Keith was the first boy I ever kissed. It was in sixth gr
ade and we were playing Spin the Bottle in my girlfriend’s garage. There were eight of us, four boys and four girls. We sat in a circle – boy, girl, boy, girl. If the bottle pointed at someone of the same gender, you kissed the person to their left. I got to go first because I picked the longest blade of grass. I spun the empty bottle of Budweiser that we dug out of the trash. When the bottle stopped spinning, it was pointing at Keith.
I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to open my mouth when we kissed. The girls and I had talked about it earlier that day when we planned to meet up with the boys in Becky’s garage, but I realized we hadn’t made a decision. Now I was first and everyone would probably follow whatever I did. I thought my heart was going to explode out of my chest. It pounded so fast it scared me. Even when I gave a violin recital, and I was always nervous at those, my heart didn’t pound like this.
I sat cross-legged on the cold cement. Keith looked at me and he didn’t move. The others were egging me on. I finally got up enough courage and got on my knees and wiggled over to Keith. I decided I wasn’t going to open my mouth. I gave him a quick peck and everyone ooed and ahhed.
Whenever I’m with someone at a bar and they buy a bottle of Budweiser, I remember that day so many years ago. And I also remember Becky’s mom catching us kissing after only a few spins. She chased us all out of the garage and sent the boys home. It wasn’t the last time we played Spin the Bottle, but it was the last time at Becky’s house.
Gina & Mike (The Yearbook Series Book 1) Page 18
