What ever happened to …

So, I got in a cleaning mood and found my 8th grade graduation class  picture. It was a small school that I only attended for a year.  Graduating class has 31 students.   I could only remember a few names.  Let’s say 8.  Running pretty much with the stats, half of those had died,   Very much not running with the stats, of the 4 who had died …. All four had died from cancer.

John, that is horrifying and eye-opening. Like most, I know far too many people who have been gotten various forms of cancer. I try to eat healthy, with lots of superfoods, adaptogens especially chaga, and minimal meat. I don't shove it down other people's throats, but sometimes I just want to do that, you know? Very sad.

Every so often I run some names from high school, I'm 60, it's startling how many have died. I rarely find out why, and some folks it doesn't surprise me that they died, but some I am surprised by.

The guy that if there had been a vote I'd have voted for "Most likely to murder some people and die of a fight in jail" did so. No surprise there.

Hi Pearl,

Yes in my HS graduating class, several were dead in 6 months.  … all predictable from their previous behavior.  

One of my closer friends poisoned his mother.  He got away with it. He accidentally fed her something she was highly allergic to.  On the Karma side of things, he spent the next several years in prison for dealing drugs and died the town drunk.

I knew that I'd passed an age milestone when, upon the quarterly arrival of the alumni magazine from my Alma Mater, I no longer check for news of former classmates in the "Career Updates" section and go straight to the "In Memoriam" section.

So sad.  I too had a small 8th grade grad. class, 33 of us, a small school.  Its hard to imagine that some of my classmates, statistically, may be deceased, yikes.  I mean I'm in my late 30s, so probably not very many, but just the idea is a bit chilling.  I haven't heard of any of my classmates, from any time in my girlhood, passing away yet, but I'm sure, since we're all gonna die sometime, that some have already.

Memory is a crazy thing. It reminds of this beautifully sad song that creeps into my mind when I seem to least expect it:


"Whatsername"

Thought I ran into you down on the street,
Then it turned out to only be a dream.

I made a point to burn all of the photographs.
She went away and then I took a different path.
I remember the face, but I can't recall the name.
Now I wonder how Whatsername has been.

Seems that she disappeared without a trace.
Did she ever marry ol' Whatshisface?

I made a point to burn all of the photographs.
She went away and then I took a different path.
I remember the face, but I can't recall the name.
Now I wonder how Whatsername has been.

Remember, whatever,
It seems like forever ago
Remember, whatever,
It seems like forever ago

The regrets... are useless in my mind.
She's in my head, I must confess.
The regrets... are useless in my mind.
She's in my head, so long ago...

And in the darkest night,
If my memory serves me right-
I'll never turn back time,
Forgetting you...but not the time.

Pearl's post reminds me of "Pepper" by the Butthole Surfers, lol.

"Marky got with Sharon, Sharon got Sherice
She was sharin' Sharon's outlook on the topic of disease
Mikey had a facial scar, and Bobby was a racist
They were all in love with dyin', they were doin' it in Texas
Tommy played piano like a kid out in the rain
Then he lost his leg in Dallas, he was dancin' with a train
They were all in love with dyin', they were drinking from a fountain
That was pourin' like an avalanche comin' down the mountain

I don't mind the sun sometimes, the images it shows
I can taste you on my lips and smell you in my clothes
Cinnamon and sugary and softly spoken lies
You never know just how you look through other people's eyes

Some will die in hot pursuit in fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit while sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life and drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche comin' down the mountain..."