My entire week of school has been filled with alumni peeking into classrooms to schedule a time for them to talk to their old teachers as well as socialize with some of the students they still recognize on campus.

Almost every alumnus I've talked to while on campus has commented on the fact that they feel out of place. They walk around the familiar campus during lunch with a visitor sticker in lieu of a backpack and watch as events take place in the rally court, the ones they used to help plan. I think this is pretty normal, but it has to feel weird when you come back to a world so familiar to you only to realize that it has been moving on without you.

There's also the notion of how in sync you feel with the people you're reconnecting with. There are certain alumni I talk to on a day-to-day basis while they're at college, so when they come home it's like nothing has changed. There are other students that I don't keep in touch with, but when they come home it's like our friendship hasn't skipped a beat. And then there are those whom I have slowly faded lines of communication with. When they come home, it's a quick "Hi, how are you?" sort of conversation that eventually ends a bit on the awkward side.

The fact that the UC spring break falls during the week that most highly-anticipated college decisions come out only adds to the awkward factor. Though it's not their fault at all, let's face it. With an atmosphere like MVHS, it's hard to hang out with someone who is having the time of their life at your dream university that you were just rejected from. On the other hand, it can be a glorious time to get insight from students from colleges that you are considering attending. As they say—you win some, you lose some.

So why does this parallel my idea of a family reunion? There's a mix of a little feeling uncomforable as you try to continue with your high school life when theirs is over, excitement to be seeing people you may not have talked to in awhile, and tension when it comes to the unfortunate timing of college decisions.

But it also has the most important aspect of a family reunion: togetherness. No matter what year you graduated from MVHS, you are always part of the family. Next year when I come back during my spring break, it may be a little weird for me, but it'll be my first family reunion and there's no way I'm missing that.