If there’s yet another phenomenon that can be credited to Facebook, it’s the wantonness with which high school reunions are currently being held, with at least one get-together taking place every month. Thanks to Facebook, people who haven’t seen each other in years suddenly remember one another and start getting back in touch. The messages are all the same:

“You look great!”
“OMG you haven’t aged a bit!”
“Let’s meet up for coffee sometime!”
“Your kids look so much like you! They’re adorable!”

And of course,

“Let’s get everyone together! It’s been so long!”

All that from people who probably never even thought of one another much in the years that they haven’t seen each other. But evidently, you do remember one another, and it’s enough to pave the way towards a grand reunion. It doesn’t even have to be a big one, though, maybe just you and your batch, maybe just some people who are still in the area and have time to spare.

What precipitates these events is usually the posting of yearbook photos or any picture from high school. Expect such photos to generate text-based squeals of delight and embarrassment. High school memories will start gushing forth from everyone: how awesome and carefree those years were, the hilarious things the class clown did and said, which people were dating at the time, and so on.

Not only do those pictures extract memories, but also generate comparisons between people’s looks then and now. As a result, one of the reasons why people want to have a reunion is to check out how everyone else has turned out, not just professionally, but also physically.

Suggestions for a reunion are typically met with a great degree of enthusiasm, but one really has to wonder if such events really are a good idea. For many people, it’s a way for them to face their past and see if they emerge from the experience unscathed. For others, it truly is a chance to meet up with some old friends and catch up. For still yet other people, high school reunions are a wonderful opportunity to observe people, sneer, and go back to their lives, which are thankfully much more interesting than any memories high school has to offer.