Hi! You’d probably remember me as the one that held up a long line of students getting down what seemed like 100 flights of stairs for a fire drill – because I had a cast on my left leg. I dislocated my knee in a Foo Fighters and Beastie Boys mosh pit and had to wear that cast for sometime.
You will also remember that I confessed to the crime of dropping my baby egg (we had to nurture them for a week, and yes my Egg’s name was Eggie Vedder), on the same flight of stairs, and because I had to run to class and didn’t have time to clean it up, had no time to cover up the evidence of my parenting failure, ultimately causing one of our beloved teachers to slip on its slimy remains (I’m so sorry!).
I recently heard a song while driving that moved me into a sensory experience, made me turn to my husband and tell him, I can smell and taste highschool with this song. It was Plush by Stone Temple Pilots and all the grit and grunge of one of the best albums to come out of the nineties rushed in surround sound.
This elicited a kind of wind in your face, world-is-your-oyster liberté similar to the last day of school and the first day of summer! Suddenly a collage of memories flood in. Friendships, heartbreaks, elated bliss, angst-ridden disappointment, unexplained pubescent giddiness, freedom. All these peaks and valleys, in hindsight leading up to the person you are today.
If you knew me in high school, you’d know too that I was that student that was sent to Mrs. Salazar’s office for dancing in the hallway by myself in front of Troika Hall (to a Led Zeppelin song) after the morning bell rang. The blue strap of my jumper skirt, wilted on the crook of my arm, as I walked in to face our most feared disciplinarian with blithe teenage nonchalance. I accepted my citation for “disrupting education” in the hallway, and skipped all the way back to class.
High School was definitely a time of awkward adolescence, a time of self-discovery without knowing we were easing into life itself. Decades later I still find myself dancing in the many metaphors of hallways. This time to a different song, more along the notes of motherhood and parenthood. Sure there are moods for all the swings that life throws you in a loop for; happy and hyper and certainly there are the tender moments, the gentle sways, the warmth of feeling your heart is full. Looking back, that feeling truly is a gift that time endows you with, in many forms. This means so much more raising a family abroad. Singing with my kids, playing with them, being silly and at the same time having to enforce discipline, order, and responsibility all in an effort to ensure they grow up to be independent, socially aware, empathetic, and conscientious adults. All in between dinner, dishes, diaper changes, distance learning, plus a full day at work. A delicate balance in a hallway with many doors.
What I’ve learned is that, as a mom of two kids, you are never really dancing alone. It’s the same too with friendships forged in high school. Like songs in a playlist, they’re there when you need a boost, a shoulder to lean on, support, to reminisce and laugh with, especially as we make our way through life. It can help keep us going in spite of what lies ahead.
What song brings you joy and gets you moving this holiday season? May music ring in, all things merry and bright for you and your family and may the light of many blessings fill your heart with song,love and joy! Happy Holidays! Here’s to a strong sisterhood of Scholasticans! Here’s a mix tape in progress (Spotify) of what I would have shared with you in high school between between the summer of 1991-1995. It’s an odd and eclectic mix for sure (much like myself 
), All these songs were always on repeat, each one fused into my DNA. Not just songs I liked; I loved each of them deeply – still do. The song I was busted with for disrupting education was D’yer Mak’er by Led Zeppelin.
Pia’s High School Mix Tape! https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4TxDaQrFCCfASnSzD1yAgA…
