Why Do We Go To Reunions? by Rolynn Anderson

As you read this, I’ll be flying from Madison, Wisconsin to Minneapolis, Minnesota.  From there I’ll take a shuttle to St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota, a Lutheran-affiliated college I attended back in the dark ages, when we actually communicated by writing letters, making phone calls and talking to each other face-to-face.  Women stayed in their own dorms with a 10:00 curfew; men had unlimited hours.  Don’t get me started about THAT inequity.  Computers?  Not one on campus.

By now you’ve figured out this is my 50^th reunion; why am I going?  I write annual Christmas cards to ONE person in my graduating class; I attended the 25^th reunion, and learned my college years were more fun than I remembered, but I did not begin corresponding with anyone at that reunion.  Still, I am returning to this college full of Scandinavians, at great cost and effort, and I’m not sure why.  What’s more:

1.  My husband isn’t going (this would be water torture to him); so I’ll be skipping all the ‘extended’ events after the 3-day event…which are for couples

2.  My Christmas card pal can’t come because she’s fighting cancer.

3.  I tried to help on the planning committee, but couldn’t do much from afar.

4.  I attempted a book signing with other writers…at first four were interested; now I’m down to (maybe) one other person sitting with me in the St. Olaf Bookstore for an hour.

5.  I've made a couple feeble ‘see you there’ overtures.  In fact, the event reminds me of important relationships I did not continue.  (An additional angst…my classmates didn’t reach out to me, either!)

6.  We lost so many of our classmates in service to our country or because of illness or accidents.  My college boyfriend died at age 58!  The memorial will be tough.

7.  I don’t like the feeling/notion of an end game; this feels a little like a ‘so long’ event.

But you know me, the half-full glass woman…what will I get out of this reunion?

1.  A reminder of who my classmates were and how far they’ve come; and who I was back then and how far I’ve come.

2.  A second reminder of the fun I had back then and the fun I’m still having (which is the truth).

3.  A couple new readers (I mean, come on, one of my books-Lie Catchers-is full of Norwegians!)

4.  A good feeling about the aging/saging years, especially since I have robo- knees!

5.  Recalling what special people I went to school with for four years (One of my roommates was a brilliant mezzo-soprano who sang opera in Germany!).

6.  Enjoying the three days for what they are, a time when a bunch of  bright, successful, aging Scandinavians get together to share memories and sing old fight songs.

Here’s one song (this tells you how unusual we are…try this with a Norwegian accent):

“We come from St. Olaf, we sure are the real stuff, our teams are the cream of the colleges great.  We fight fast and furious, our teams are injurious; we know Carleton college will sure meet its fate.  Um Ya, Ya, Um Ya Ya (This goes on for awhile).”  I know.  Crazy.

Try this:

Lutefisk, Lefse, Rummegrot, a Sil, we come from St. Olaf, the college on the hill.

So think of me these next three days, finding balance and fun at St. Olaf, trying not to overthink the whole event.  If you have some reunion advice, I’ll take it!

 Note:  On June 10, I’ll give you a play-by-play of what I learned.  I promise.

More about Lie Catchers, my Amazon Encore/Wild Rose novel, set in contemporary Petersburg, Alaska, a town full of Norwegians who arrived in the early 1900's.  I take on a real cold case from 1932 along with a recent murder.  Here's more: 
http://amzn.com/1628301651

Two unsolved murders will tear apart an Alaska fishing town unless a writer and a government agent reveal their secret obsessions.

Treasury agent Parker Browne is working undercover in Petersburg, Alaska to investigate a money scam and a murder. His prime suspect, Liv Hanson, is a freelance writer struggling to save her family’s business. Free spirited, full of life, and with a talent for catching liars, she fascinates Parker.

Trying to prove she’s a legitimate writer who cares about Petersburg’s issues, Liv pens a series of newspaper articles about an old, unsolved murder. When her cold case ties in with Parker’s investigation, bullets start to fly.

Parker understands money trails, and Liv knows the town residents. But he gave up on love two years ago, and she trusts no one, especially with her carefully guarded secret. If they mesh their skills to find the killers, will they survive the fallout?

Lie Catchers: http://amzn.com/1628301651 

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