For this issue we explored what we’ve learned in the last three years and how we learned it. Al Hine reflected on seeing far too many friends and colleagues struggle with pain: “We were put here to help each other out. Life should not be so hard for some. Be grateful and be helpful.” John Lobitz commented on the loss of his first wife: “Seeing how hard it is for a child to lose a parent reemphasizes the importance of having conversations about wishes for end-of-life healthcare as a ‘gift’ to your loved ones.” Bruce Pacht has learned he doesn’t have the stamina he used to have: “I cannot burn the candle at both ends without serious consequences and don’t recover as fast as I used to. It’s a very, very difficult reality to recognize, accept, and then to practice.” Rob Kugler has learned from working on the 50th yearbook and our reunion “that so many of the classmates whom I had written off at graduation as reprobates, incapable (and undeserving) of redemption are actually decent, interesting people with whom I am proud to be associated.” Ed Kern learned by trial and error that “in fundraising the end justifies the agony; and through fundraising I learned what thoughtful and diverse classmates I have.” Tom Flannery has learned “pretty much what I’ve known all along: Things are never as good as they look and rarely as bad as they seem, and grandkids are God’s gift to old people.” Warren Cook added, “I have learned that looking back and taking stock of my past has enriched my life going forward. I have learned it through a number of efforts, but top of mind is how I have been able to include my memories of Bill Smoyer into my life today even though he’s been gone for 50 years.” Pat Horgan has learned “that with very few exceptions, man is mostly an emotional animal who uses invalid or fallacious constructions to rationalize and justify his feelings. And everyone our age needs to have a colonoscopy.” Bill White learned that he has become more emotional, which he discovered by looking at the photos of himself walking his daughter down the aisle. “On my face was, instead of a grin, a grimace.” Phil Curtis says, “Carpe diem! If relatively speaking we’re on the last few holes of an 18-hole life, then I hope all of them are par fives!” Jim Clark found downsizing and relocating after 40 years to be “liberating and reinvigorating despite the tremendous effort involved. Old dogs can learn new tricks. Life is indeed good.” Larry Fabian has learned about Morocco, and Ed Arnold has learned a great deal about allopathic medicine: Read more from them and other news at our new website (www.1967.dartmouth.org). Finally, Larry Langford hopes his marriage on June 16 to Candace Langan, several years after they each lost their spouses, confirms to everyone that love is all, and life is indeed good.

—Larry Langford, P.O. Box 71, Buckland, MA 01338; larrylangford@mac.com