Reunions are strange affairs
Full of shadows of
events long past
Faces swim at you from
the crowd
Faces from the past
Some are old friends
Greyer in colour
Frailer in body
But still recognisable
Someone says
“I haven't seen you
for years”
And suddenly you see
them as they once were
You swap stories
Exchange remembrances
And the years just
melt away
Though at times you
grasp for names
In the far reaches
Of your cluttered mind
You pour over old
albums
Regimental photos
Or company teams
Picking out familiar
faces
“His name was Chisholm”
“What was his first
name?”
“George?”
“No he played trombone”
“Tom, Tim, no Jim”
You feel pleased with
yourself.
Your trepidation at
attending long gone
With the pleasure of
old friendships revisited
You are glad you made
the effort
At reunions and other
such gatherings
Amongst the sea of
faces
There always appears
As if released from a
time capsule
That one person who
seems completely unchanged
The “Dorian Gray”
Who makes you feel
older than ever
And a little bit
envious
But not bitter
You console yourself
with the fact
He has a painting of
Methuselah in his attic
Plus there was that
smug satisfaction you got
When you met the
rabble rousers of your youth
That are now the
teetotallers
Or those with walking
frames
And the special diets
Reunions are more than
that though
It’s not just about
meeting old friends
Some people you never
liked
Some you always avoided
Those are the ones who
propel themselves
Excocet like from the
throng
And act like your long
lost best friend
They are the ones you
need rescuing from
That cause time to
stand still
They ones that caused
your trepidation
Who talks incessantly
About everything
And nothing
The ones that cause
you to vow
“This is my last
reunion”
Or “Never again”
But because the one
annoyance
Is the exception to
the rule
When next you're asked
You always relent
