Last night T. and I had the chance to go out to dinner with a group of friends. It was a reunion of the Seminary Council from our high school. Twenty years ago we were all "called" and became part of the council for our L.D.S. seminary. For those of you not familiar with L.D.S. seminary kids from grade nine on (in Utah) have the option of going to a religion class off school grounds for one class during the day. The school system calls it released time lol, I guess because we are released from their grasp. The seminary building is within walking distance of the school so it's not like we would have to drive to get there or anything. In other states they have early morning seminary but here in Utah with such a concentration of Mormons we can have this time during the school day if we so choose. So I was on a council my senior year in high school with 10 other kids. Five girls and five boys. I guess we were kind of like the Student Council for the seminary but we weren't elected. It was a church calling.
To be honest I was blown away when my Stake President called me in to issue the calling. I got a call telling me to bring my parents to a meeting with him. Let me tell you I was a little nervous. There were some extenuating circumstances that were good cause for those nerves. Nothing that I had done wrong but some other stuff that I can't get into. So when the Stake President told me that's why I was there in his office with my parents I was SO relieved and flabbergasted. I had never even thought about being on that council.
Anyway we had a great time putting together activities and devotionals for the student body that year. We built a lighthouse out of Popsicle sticks that kids would earn for reading in the New Testament (which was the course of study that year). They would write their names on the sticks and we would add them to the lighthouse. It even had a flashing light in it at the end of the year. My job on the council was Historian and it was my job to take pictures and put together a scrap book. Which they keep at the seminary still. I went and picked it up and brought it to the dinner last night. It was a riot to go through those pictures.
Seeing everyone was wonderful. They are truly good people. It was so fun to sit and talk and reminisce. They brought old year books and some old pictures from high school. We went around the table and had everyone report on what they were doing now. And we even had reports from those who weren't able to attend.
I'll admit I was nervous going in. I'd only really kept in regular contact with one of the girls and I'd seen a couple of other members off an on through the years, just in passing. But it was a bit nerve wracking. All those self doubts and thoughts of "I don't look like I used to" come creeping in. But those nerves were gone within minutes of being there. Everyone put everyone else at ease and it was just a good good night. With really good people.
