Places Along the Way----The Solitary Pre-Reunion

40 Years. Hard to believe that the day had arrived for the reunion of high school classmates from the class of '74 at Enterprise High School. I read this article recently and was struck by the deep personal connection the author clearly articulated about his hometown of Enterprise, Alabama. I was clearly looking forward to the evening's activities at the historic Rawls Hotel.

I was doing this one alone; I know how difficult some of these parties  can be on spouses. My wife didn't mind me going 'stag'; after almost 36 years of marriage, I suppose she figured I was too old and tired to get into much trouble. 
 
There was a method to my leaving Montgomery at 4:30 Saturday to arrive in Enterprise at 7. I knew I would be well over an hour early and decided to create a 'dog path' around my adopted hometown, just me and my trusty pickup truck and reminisce.

My first stop was on the northern outskirts of town, a beautiful sports complex with manicured ball parks, ponds, and jogging tracks. It did not exist during my high school years. The entry is 'protected' by a US Army Huey, the workhorse of the 1st Cav in Vietnam. A wall of memory is close by, honoring the war dead from the city. I recalled all those years of living on Ft. Rucker almost becoming oblivious to the sound of the Hueys as they seemed to fly around the clock back then. An immediate impression of the citizens of Enterprise is the deep American patriotism and support for our military,  something of a sweet irony that runs very deeply in many former Confederate cities and towns. Southerners love America and volunteer for the Armed Services at high rates. 

My  next stop: the impressive new high school in Enterprise. One of the largest public high schools in the southeast, its expansive campus speaks to the commitment this community has for education. It is even more impressive knowing this is not some large urban metropolis; Enterprise has a population of approximately 26,000 citizens.  I am extremely proud to be a graduate of the Enterprise City System.

Of course, there is a new high school because there is NO old high school. The building that held my footprints was destroyed by a deadly tornado on March 1, 2007. An event so devastating,  it brought President George W. Bush to Enterprise to support her grieving citizens. 

I was compelled to go by the barren field where my old school once stood, looking for any physical remnant of my years there.  
I found it in a set of steps leading from the lower parking lot to the old school building. The short cinder block wall attached to the 'Enterprise blue' railing was a spot I frequented along with some of my buddies. I turned off my truck and sat for a bit. I could almost hear Coach Morgan hollering, "GET TO CLASS, BOYS!" But my mind seemed to drift more to that day of infamy in Enterprise history than it did to my years there; I thought of the souls lost on that day and prayed for their families.

I would have liked to have spent more time meditating on my old stump, but I had a few more places to visit.  I ended up behind 'Old

Junior'-- Enterprise Jr High School, with one of my strongest visuals of the night. This was the P.E. field where I met my life long friend, Ron Bissell. We chatted one day early in our 9th grade year (1971) very close to those old concrete benches and found out we were both Army brats who lived on Ft Rucker. We have taken many different roads since that day but our friendship remains constant. 

I slowly drifted down College St. and noticed the landmark Elementary school, established in 1919, carved at the peak of the building. It was impressive to me even back in 7th grade as I walked home from Old Junior.

The long breaks in the pavement that stretch across College St. have not changed. My tires made that familiar 'clack-clack' as I passed over them. In fact, very little about College St. had changed at all. The old mill smokestack close by reminded me of the shift change horn, that bellowing roar we all looked forward to hearing, knowing that the school day was also coming to an end.

My conclusion about Enterprise, Alabama was pretty clear as I headed to the Rawls.  Embracing progress. Promoting excellence well beyond many small cities its size. But the paradox is as uniquely impressive; the 'clack clack' of College St. The Boll Weevil Monument.  A school from 1919. Old concrete walls and benches.   Embracing progress but preserving the small town psyche of the Deep South.  It was 7:07; I was pulling up to the Rawls Hotel fashionably late, or in Enterprise, just plain old late.
 My Solitary Pre Reunion was coming to an end. If the 'real deal' was to be anything like the last hour or so, it was going to be a wonderful night. And it was. More later.