10 Years Later

Friday is the last day that the seniors at the local high school attend classes. I have a bunch of high school kids I work with on the weekends, and although usually I don't think too much about high school, today I was pondering the realization that I graduated high school ten years ago. Some realizations:

1. I find it interesting how little contact I have had with my high school buddies in the past ten years ago. When you are in high school you are so wrapped up in your little friendships, but in reality not too much about high school ended up mattering. I still Facebook chat with a few folks from time to time, and I have been known to Facebook stalk, but for the most part I just don't feel invested in where people are, what is going on, etc. Part of it is probably a result of having gone to school in Arizona and now I live in Northern Wisconsin. But I wish I could go tell High School Senior Grant not to worry so much about all the little social bumps through high school.

2. I had this vision of who I would be at this time of my life. It hasn't really held up...but in a good way. I have never been one to draw exact plans, but I had some sort of idea of where I thought I would be. For instance, I definitely was aware of being gay then, but I thought it would be something I would grow out of, and I definitely never thought I would be an "out" gay man. Ten years later, here I am, farting rainbows.  Another example, I don't think I realized back then what a tough-son-of-gun I was. The ten years after high school have had some real wild twists and turns. Things weren't cute all the time, but I'm still kicking. And if I went and told High School Grant everything that would happen in the next ten years, High School Grant would probably crap his pants a bit. And although life is far from perfect now, and I have a whole set of scars from the past ten years, I am glad I am the person I am today. It makes me ponder what 38 year old Grant would say to 28 year old Grant.

3. Dude, I am going to be 28 years old next month. Holy freak. Sometimes I fool myself into thinking that I am not that old, but then the number jumps out at me. I mean, I worry about crow's feet wrinkles and about lagging metabolism...but I don't usually put just how old I am in the forefront of my mind. I am not middle-age, am I? Oh gosh, I hope not. If anything I think I might start putting on some old man attitudes. Like maybe I will stop caring about pop culture. (Not too likely.) And maybe I will start referring more to the "old days". (I kind of do that already. The other day I was trying to explain Princess Diana to someone, and I kept thinking of it as "the old days".) In all honesty, I think I need to settle into being an older person. Can't treat this old battered body like it is 17 years old still. And maybe I will start giving more sage advice.