Relationship Rx

Dear Readers: I received an invitation to go to my highschool reunion this week. Not only do I anticipate great discomfort in going back but they actually want me to pay for this privilege! Like going to a dentist for a root canal and having to buy an airplane ticket to get there. High school was not all bad. I played on two varsity teams, learned about Shakespeare, Calcium Chloride and the physics of funneling beer. And in the process made some terrific life-long friends. The fact is I don't feel good about where I am now in my life -- as compared to my friends and every one else who'll show at the event. I mean... who but those that are successful attend a reunion? I can see it now. All of us standing around the school gym talking about glory days -- why do they call it glory days, when all the good stuff happened at night? -- my friends wives laughing politely at the inside jokes, all the while stealing glances at their watches. I'll be drinking too much trying to overcome the shame I feel at not "owning" vs. "renting," not having three kids or a two car garage or one giant mortgage payment. Hey, come to think of it, maybe my life isn't so bad after all. (Pause) Yup. It is. My friends will undoubtedly pressure me to go and I'll make up some flimsy excuse about being in graduate school and not having the funds. What I really want to tell them is...I can't bear feeling "less than" for "more than" ten minutes. The worst part is that my own shame is preventing me from connecting with those I really care about. What do you think guys? --Curious George