Newark, New Jersey

After months and months of planning, we had three days to execute it. Three days that were so worth it. The reunion of BSN batch 1990 of San Pedro College was a success. Call it team effort: we didn't even have the services of an events organizer. Despite our hectic lives, many just took part in this effort that culminated in this wonderful meeting after 18 long years!

This was my first time to attend a college reunion. The first thought that came to my mind when I heard the plan last year was am I really this old? I think of reunions with the dread that we are seeing long lost comrades for the first time whose absence are always counted in years. And when one counts in years, couldn't physical changes be far behind? At the back of my mind, I was wondering if I'll see former classmates/batchmates as thinner or bigger or sexier.

gala dinner at the Marriott in Newark, New Jersey (Aug. 9)picnic with the group at Warinanco Park, New Jersey (Aug. 10)
at the Statue of Liberty during our New York city tour (Aug. 11)
I realize after the initial encounter in this reunion that it's not the physical changes that matter. In ways more meaningful, it's actually what has not changed that matter: the kakulitan, the kakwelahan, some traits that have really defied ageing. This reminds me of our college years, of our surging hormones of youth. When I look at my batchmates now, I see them exactly as who they were back then. And that's exactly the part of this reunion that I find most memorable.

Even more poignant for our group is the fact that we actually have a reunion outside of the Philippines. Our search for that proverbial greener pasture have led us to become global Pinoys: we work and live elsewhere but deep in our hearts, we know we have not forgotten where we came from. We certainly know our roots and are very proud of it.

After 18 years, we're counting for some more. Hmmm....20 in 2010?

click below for more photos:
BSN Batch 1990 Reunion