Reunion Recap

This past Saturday Damon and I made the two hour drive to Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana. I graduated from Earlham in May of 1999 and they do their reunion activities over Homecoming Weekend each fall. I met some of my closest friends in the world at Earlham, including Damon. I walked away from the reunion totally over stimulated and didn’t sleep well that night. I kept going over a lot of the conversations I had and there were a few things that kept resurfacing. I was thinking about how impressed I was with what so many of my classmates were doing with their lives and how many of them credit their experience at Earlham for what they decided to pursue as careers. Several of the people I caught up with work for non-profits or even started their own non-profits, teach young children, are completing graduate degrees, etc. It struck me that a high percentage of Earlham alums seem to be involved in more service oriented fields. I shouldn't have been surprised by this. Earlham is a very small liberal arts school that was founded by the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) in the mid 1800s. Most of us weren’t raised in the Quaker religion but came away from Earlham with such a respect for a lot of what Quakers value and even though we may not always realize it those ideals have influenced our major life choices. Earlham faculty, who we called by their first names, were always talking about engaging us in the life long process of learning. I think the Quaker ideals of social activism, living simply and creating communities are alive and well in all of us. One thing I loved is that our professors usually started class with a moment of silence and we were able to use that time to catch our breath, focus, pray or do whatever felt right. If only we all could approach our daily decisions with a moment of silence. I think we would all be less stressed and would make more rational decisions. I have been to several weddings of Earlham couples and even though they weren’t Quaker they incorporated the moment of silence into their ceremony. I imagine this was done in gratitude for what we all gained from the influence of Quaker values. I even think that our decision to adopt was partly influenced by the connection we feel to our global community and that was surely cultivated at Earlham.

The other thing I realized is that I have totally been taking for granted how lucky Damon and I are to have the shared experience of going to Earlham. I imagine many people will tell you that their college experiences were unique but I truly believe this about Earlham. Several people approached us and told us how jealous they were that we didn’t have to explain all things Earlham to our significant other because we both just get it. One friend had brought his wife back to Earlham for the first time and you could see the joy in eyes as he got to observe her taking in all the experiences and meeting people that were a big part of his college experience. At the class dinner another friend was showing me her pictures from the day and one of the pictures was the back of a bathroom stall that had a Frisbee hanging on the coat hook. She said she took the photo because it was “so Earlham” and she wanted to show her boyfriend. I never realized that Damon and I were just able to talk about Earlham without having to explain it. Clearly, I really need people to knock me over the head with lessons of gratitude sometimes. It is a wonderful community of friends at Earlham and I hope to continue to build on that wherever Damon and I go.

“They gathered sticks and kindled a fire and left it burning.”

-Engraved in the fireplace in the cafeteria at Earlham College