Friendship may fade,
as the lives of people
we know create trajectories
that shape a present tense.
The reunion of my graduating class
is to set to commence
in two weeks, when i receive
a phone call
from my close friend Thomas.
“You need to go to the reunion.”
“No, actually you do. The Loner’s wife is on the committee and
you need to go.”
The Loner was a long time friend
of Thomas, but was only an acquaintance of mine.
“Ok, I’ll go. But if i have a bad night
it’s on you.”
“Hahahaha, Ok Kid. I’ll take that bet.
We got along with everyone at the time.”
“It’s about time you walked over here to talk to me…”
Caroline was way ahead of the curve in the 1980’s.
She held a multi-band concert
in her parents backyard
in late August 1985.
It was my first
proper gig as a musician.
At the reunion, Caroline asks me a question.
“Why are you not on Facebook?”
I reply, “I am. I use a fake name.”
“So, who are you?”
“It’s under Ellery Twining.”
“Why is that?”
“Well, you can’t search for my real name
on the platform for anything.”
“Do you have something to hide?” she asks,
simultaneously coy and probing.
“Of course not! But, someday, you will
regret using your real name
on social media.”
“oh, Ellery, some things don’t change…..”
A month later, i receive
an email from Caroline.
“Hey ELLERY! My friends and i think
it’s so funny
that you use a fake name
on Facebook!”
My reply was simple.
” I find it hard to believe
that you, and all of your friends
have three name profiles:
Joyce Burr Carpenter
Caroline Williams Smith
Sage Scott Anderson”
Our conversation eventually
led to a humorous
evaluation
of a shared morality.
Caroline invited me
to attend a dinner
at her summer rental~
a house at the end of
Cedar Point Road.
The evening immediately dissolves into
predictable tropes.
The women congregate on the patio.
The men gather on the
first floor deck.
“I have an incredible picture of this waitress from
my last business trip. Do you guys want to see it?”
He turns his phone to an angle
where we could all see the image.
“Will you look at that… hooo boy!”
Thomas and i I looked directly at each other.
I immediately knew
i had to suppress
this information,
as something i could not reveal.
I thought I was protecting Caroline.
I was not.
I was afraid.