So last Saturday night Harry and I got all dressed up. (Meaning we wore more than just shorts and sandals.) We attended our 45th class reunion...Pleasant Valley High School, Class of '68. Go Bears!

Oy vay. Where have all the flowers gone? Long time passing.We had a great time! Due in part to a game we played. The committee came up with a list of questions and we had to guess which one of our 52 classmates it was about.Each table worked together on trying to come up with the correct answers. In the process, we laughed, we reminisced, felt good when we could remember, and slapped our heads when we forgot something we thought 45 years ago we'd never forget. I recommend this game to everyone who's planning their next reunion.Harry's favorite word was "Groovey." How 60s.Another question asked...who joined the circus after graduation? I thought it was a joke but it wasn't. The answer was Nathan Seifert, someone most of us had not seen in 45 years. Nate attended the reunion. When he walked into the room, many of us had no clue who he was. He got my vote for "Who Changed the Most," physically.He had worked for a zoo/animal park in Maryland helping the trainer of big cats, who thought Nate had potential and sent him to the trainer for Ringling Brothers Circus in Florida. He worked with Gunther Gebel-Williams. He believed Nate would be better suited to work with the elephants.Nate says it was a great experience. Each elephant had its own personality and are a lot like dogs. They have about a 200-word vocabulary they can understand and are communal. He spent three years with the circus before he went on to his next adventure.This following story came from classmate Don Stoy. Lou Rehrig, PV Class of '67, and Nate were at the Jersey shore many years ago. Lou ended up in trouble with the tide and waves and Nate saved his life. As a result, Lou and his wife named their first son after Nate.Believe it or not, almost every one of us have had some kind of adventure over the years. Some good, some not so good.Robert Binick has run three marathons...in Denver, San Francisco and New York. Fohn Foery rode his motorcycle to California and has been to New Zealand and Australia. Bonnie George Mfarej runs competitively in 5K races almost every weekend and plans to continue until her body falls apart.Connie Kleintop Moretz kayaks. Marguerite Snyder Darnasky raised eight children!George Kitchen worked for the Elizabeth, NJ Fire Department and retired as captain after 31 years and now is president of the nonprofit Eastern PA Animal Alliance and volunteers with Save a Shepherd Rescue Alliance.Guy Smith and his wife, Lois, spent the evening with us, even though Guy just completed treatment for throat cancer and has had a harrowing last few months. They're very optimistic of his recovery and we love him for wanting to spend the night with us.Brenda Keller couldn't make it because she had just been released from the hospital the day before as she recovers from surgery and a set-back, due to uterine cancer. But we hear she's on the road to recovery and we sent her a big "GET WELL SOON" message.Everyone was asked to submit their Bucket List. Traveling was the most popular answer.Sharon Anthony Solt was a little more specific in her travel plans because she'd love to photograph Machu Piccu-Lost City of the Incas, Iceland, Jerusalem, Bora Bora and Tuscany. She'd like to take a photography class with Richard Bernabe, learn to scuba dive and continue honoring our soldiers and veterans as a member of an active organization.Connie Green Arnold and husband Vaughn Arnold, high school sweethearts, hope to travel abroad, as does Brenda Keller. Glenda Batchler Hoffman, Don Stoy and Dora Borger Tartar want to visit all 50 states.Shirley Brotzman hopes to someday revisit friends in Colorado and finish home projects.John Decker wants to drive on a NASCAR track in North Carolina and take a two-day tour of Gettysburg with a guide.John Stroud would like to take his wife, Linda to some of the European countries that he was in. Beverly Dorshimer Mostellar would love to also travel to Europe and do a mission trip.Barry Haydt plans someday to travel to the western part of the US. He wants to pursue writing, reading, improve his golf game, and flip his house.Rocky Kuder wants to fly in a hot-air balloon and meet a few movie stars.To play golf in Scotland is one of Norm Phancook's wishesBill Smiley hopes to live long enough to see his grandson, Ben, play for the Philadelphia Phillies.Guy Smith wants to bag the elusive bear he's been seeking for years.We're now at the age were some of us are retired while the rest of us are looking forward to retirement. Some are helping in the baby-sitting of grandkids and all who have grandchildren say they can't get enough of spending time with them.It was a fun night of reliving the past, talking about our present and sharing dreams for our futures.But there's one thing we all have in common...we are all PV Proud. Go Bears!