Back in the Spring of '78

Forum Retreat, 1978
Spring 1978, Somewhere in Virginia
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The thing about the interwebs is if you don't mind being found it's not that hard to be found... or find people.

I joined Facebook back when joining required a .edu email address and was used primarily by college students. My purpose in signing up was to try and find some of the students I had taught back in my elementary school librarian days who were, by then, either in college or graduating from college. In part, I was curious to see what had happened with some of them and, in part, I was curious to know if any of them remembered their long-haired, exuberant reading librarian.

Somewhere along the way Facebook decided they might be able to make money if they opened themselves up to unlimited registrations. Now anyone can join and I'll admit that it's a pretty neat way of catching up with people both in the distant past and in the present.

Lately it's been a weird hodgepodge of people from two very different facets of my life -- elementary school and the very tail ends of high school.

Starting with the latter, back in the late 70s I was in a pair of summer camps and then part of a twice monthly youth group. These were the seventies and instead of simply being vaguely coordinated "youth activity" groups they were fairly structured. They're what we might now, nostalgically, refer to as "Encounter Groups."

The goal of these groups was to get each member of the group to talk, become more in touch with their feelings and be able to communicate them to other people. As well, part of the group dynamic was that each member of the group also had to learn to listen to what the other people had to say and not form judgements or offer 'helpful suggestions'. It was talking and listening, pure and simple.

It also managed to forge some very intense friendships. The mid-late teenage years are difficult ones and having a group of people whom you trust to that degree was invaluable.

This photo was one I took at a Spring retreat back in '78. Looking back at this photograph... well, there's a mix of emotions. It's hard to believe that people who meant so much at one point in time are now long lost. I also wonder how their stories have turned out.

I took this photo with a tripod and a timer so I could run into the shot. Even the most keen-eyed amongst you will likely have trouble picking me out of the crowd.

And while I'm not going to tell you which one I am, I will say that while I brought Grover with me to the retreat, I'm nowhere near him in the shot. :)

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