It was a beautiful day in Memphis…May 1963. We had just graduated from high school, and from the smiles on our faces, we were happy about that. We all piled into this Morris Minor convertible and someone snapped the photo…magically capturing a moment in time.
There were applications for college or other plans for futures already set in place. There were over 200 of us in that graduating class. I made it to the 10th and 20th KHS reunions, but most of my classmates I would never see again. I wasn’t aware of that sad fact on this happy day above.
Fifty years ago there were no computers as we know today, no internet, no email and most of us didn’t have automobiles. We used the telephone to call one another as soon as we walked home from school to talk about our day. Nevermind, we had just seen one another an hour or so before. We were all great students with good grades. We were in the Honor Society, Student Council, Talon yearbook staff and different other extracurricular activities. We did a lot of things as groups – like roller skating on Friday nights. We all loved roller skating! I can still remember the thrill of skating fast in the roller rink to the sounds of the 50’s and 60’s rock and roll! I loved skating backwards. I would love to try roller skating again with my grandchildren…but somehow, fifty years later, I’m afraid I’d break a hip!
Most of our mothers sewed our clothes and we all had great wardrobes. To school we wore saddle oxfords and penny loafers (usually with white socks) or flats. On Sundays, we wore “high heels” with hosiery. By the time we were in college, the heels were really high and were called “spikes”! Not as high as the platform “stilletos” today but definitely high heels. Oh funny things, memories…
I saw this photo for the first time yesterday on Facebook (shared by a friend in my KHS class and used with her permission). The memories came flooding in. You may think you have forgotten something but you haven’t. Those memories are still there…just layered over with years and years of other memories in time.
In case you can’t tell which one I am in the photos. In the automobile, I’m the one standing up. Photo below: second from right. 😉
11 Comments
JUDY A. CHASE
Dianne, I just spent some time reading postings.. Thanks for the reminding me of things memories of things in my own life, Email and let me know how you are.
Dianne
Thank you, Judy…I will definitely be in touch and we can catch up. Hope all is well…
Judy CHASE
i need you to send your personal email to my home and yahoo account so that we can talk privately and phone number I must have not them entered in my address book
Dianne
Will do! 😉
Murray
Thanks to Patricia for sharing all of the photos with us. I have quite a collection of photos from our era, but I believe that this one may capture the moment more than any in my possession. Hang in there girl, the snow will melt soon.
Dianne
I agree, Murray! Looks like something straight out of a 60’s movie! Thank you for posting it and thanks to Patricia for hanging on to it all these years. I’ve been trying to remember more of the details of that day…wish I could remember who the mystery girl is. Thankfully, the snow – even the snowplow pile – is gone…just in time for it to snow more on Thursday! 😉
Janet
Dianne, I recognized you right off the bat! I’m sure it was a treat to see this photo for the first time. It’s funny how, as kids, we have assumptions about how life is going to be–and how they so often are proven wrong later. It is rather bittersweet to look back and realize how many hopes never came to fruition and how many people we’ve lost contact with. But then we realize that we’ve also experienced many wonderful things that we couldn’t foresee when we were seventeen or eighteen and that we’ve met many great people who were not part of our world when we were young. Life is so much bigger than we imagine it is when we first step out into it.
Dianne
Beautifully said, Janet. Little did I know in this photo – I was seventeen – all the wonderful mountaintops that I was going to experience…along with the hard times and the deep valleys. God is so good…He only gives us ONE day at the time. I thank God that He has been with me “through it all” as the song goes…
Karen
Beautiful capture of a very special day! Oh, the hopes and dreams of the young and innocent! The world was at our doorstep and we were going to conquer it all! And then we grow up. And realize that we are only human. And what we thought was important then, wasn’t all that important in the scheme of things. If only we could speak to that young person we were then! But then we would never learn the wonderful lessons life teaches us about what is truly important and precious in life. Sometimes we just need to live those lessons and enjoy the ride!
Lovely Memories. I had those saddle shoes, too. And the penny loafers with a real shiny penny. Hugs, xoxo
Dianne
I agree, Karen! Would that we had all known back then what we know now…but then we would have missed the journey. Great memories…
Kathleen
Well, how fantastic to see that photo after all this time. There is nothing like a photo to trigger memories and this is such a good photo too.