It has been an exciting week here in the SCV. Election signs are up, and in a little over a month the election will be upon us. City Council may change a little. Later, we will get a new face in Congress.
So at the monthly breakfast meeting of the Hart High Friends yesterday, we managed to solve all of the problems in the world and a few in our old home town. We also had some new faces with us … well, not new; just a few many of us hadn’t seen in years.
As a group, we are mostly Hart alumni from the ‘50s and ‘60s. This time, sitting at a table off to the side, there were some 2012 Hart grads. Did we look that young a couple of years after graduation?
Most of us at the table knew of only one high school in the whole SCV. It was a small school compared to those in the lesser valley to the south, and everyone knew everyone. It was, at the time, a small-town high school. We were also isolated up here in “the sticks” or “Hicksville.”
We had the usual small talk about favorite teachers and coaches and those who weren’t so favorite. I suggested we sing the alma mater, but not everyone could remember the words. We all knew the lyrics were written by Mr. Sims.
Friends from two decades of Hart High students. Long ago we decided we were all seniors now, so seating at the table didn’t evolve into a “Junior lawn” (between the administration building and the auditorium) or a “Senior Quad” (where the collection of pipes in the form of a lodge or teepee sits). No, we sit near old friends or new ones. It doesn’t matter. We are all proud Hart High Indians.
Our topics of conversation have changed. Our politics have moved a little more to the right as a whole, and many of us guys would really like to see our belt buckles, when we are wearing them. We complain of stiff joints and loud grandchildren. (Love those grands.) Smart phones get passed around with pictures of those grands and kids and dogs and wives and ex-wives and places we’ve been, too. Thousands of pictures. Each of us beams the biggest grin as we show off our kids and grandkids.
Each month the server takes our picture, only this time she had to take four or five to get us all. We had a very large turnout.
The folks at Cathy’s Deli at the corner of Lyons and Wayman got our coffee or tea and took our orders. Good food and good company. We need little more. Back in the day, we had few places for a breakfast meeting. Maybe the Saugus Café.
Last week I also learned how much I love our California freeways. Taking the 14 to the 5 to the 405 and west on the 101 … made that trip a few times before I graduated, and now I’m doing it again. This time I had family visiting and staying with my ex-father-in-law in Woodland Hills. Happy times to see them, including my former wife.
This week it is more trips to the same place as I get to be a cab driver for the ex-father-in-law. He has a number of medical appointments and can no longer drive.
So now there are two in the family who cannot drive. My former wife and her father. She flew back to Kentucky yesterday, along with our daughter-in-law and grandson. It was snowing there the last time I checked the weather reports. They must be really cold about now.
It was a good visit with the family and with old friends, too. At the monthly breakfast we always talk about those we would love to have breakfast with, but have already passed to the world beyond the horizon. We’ll have to wait to see them.
The same with my former spouse. Her health is declining quickly. As I took the bags out of the trunk and placed them on the curb at LAX, my eyes were filled with tears. I realized I may never do that for her again.
But she said something that gave me hope and increased my faith. She said she loves me and always will. She said the next time we meet, it will be without tears and regret. We hugged and I watched her roll away in the wheelchair with our grandson at her side.
Yes, we will all meet again without tears and regret. That is my faith.
But getting there hurts so damned much.
Darryl Manzer grew up in the Pico Canyon oil town of Mentryville in the 1960s and attended Hart High School. After a career in the U.S. Navy he returned to live in the Santa Clarita Valley. He can be reached at dmanzer@scvhistory.com and his commentaries, published on Tuesdays and Sundays, are archived at DManzer.com. Watch his walking tour of Mentryville [here].
COMMENT POLICY: We welcome comments from individuals and businesses. All comments are moderated. Comments are subject to rejection if they are vulgar, combative, or in poor taste.
REAL NAMES ONLY: All posters must use their real individual or business name. This applies equally to Twitter account holders who use a nickname.
All opinions and ideas are welcome. Factually inaccurate, libelous, defamatory, profane or hateful statements are not.
Your words must be your own. All commentary is subject to editing for legibility. There is no length limit, but the shorter,
the better the odds of people reading it. "Local" SCV-related topics are preferred. Send commentary to: LETTERS (at) SCVNEWS.COM. Author's full name, community name, phone number and e-mail address are required. Phone numbers and e-mail addresses are not published except at author's request. Acknowledgment of submission does not guarantee publication.
Helping our students stay on track to complete their goals remains our top priority. To that end, we are offering a wide variety of classes this spring designed to do just that.
The Santa Clarita Veteran Services Collaborative has continued to actively serve our veteran community throughout the COVID–19 pandemic which began one year ago.
Grocery and drug store workers are set to get “hero pay” after the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved the urgency ordinance during Tuesday’s regular meeting.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health confirmed Tuesday 157 new deaths and 2,091 new cases of confirmed COVID-19, with 25,793 total cases in the Santa Clarita Valley.
Maria’s Italian Deli in Newhall has plans to reopen in April, following the announcement it would be closing its doors after 47 years in business last year.
Supervisor Kathryn Barger, whose 5th District represents the Santa Clarita Valley, will introduce a motion Tuesday asking the Board of Supervisors to send a five-signature letter in support of Assembly Bill 420, a bipartisan bill by Assembly members Sharon Quirk-Silva and Suzette Martinez Valladares.
Love is in the air and so is the smell of delicious food for this romance-themed episode of The MAIN’s virtual series, “Food Sessions,” as it returns with another mouthwatering episode this Thursday, Feb. 25, at 7:00 p.m.
Castaic Union School District (CUSD) was excited to welcome their Transitional Kindergarten-2nd grade students back to in-person instruction on Monday at Castaic Elementary, Live Oak Elementary, and Northlake Hills Elementary schools.
Students in grades seven through 12 can’t yet return to school in Los Angeles County, but William S. Hart Union High School District board members want county and state officials to prioritize the vaccination of educators to prepare for reopening.
Los Angeles County Public Health officials on Monday confirmed 21 new deaths and 943 new cases of COVID-19 countywide, while Henry Mayo Newhall Hospital in Valencia reported two new deaths, bringing the hospital's total up to 140 deaths since the pandemic began.
Helping our students stay on track to complete their goals remains our top priority. To that end, we are offering a wide variety of classes this spring designed to do just that.
At Tuesday’s Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting, Supervisor Kathryn Barger will introduce a motion, coauthored by Chair Hilda L. Solis, that looks to identify commercial property across the county that could be repurposed for critically needed temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness as well as for longterm affordable housing.
California Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond announced Monday the release of grading guidelines that address assessing student progress and the ongoing issue of equity in distance and hybrid learning environments.
The Santa Clarita Public Library's Valencia Branch's computer lab is available to residents in need of computer access for one hour per day with a library card on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Family, friends and colleagues gathered Monday morning to honor Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station Deputy Pedro “Pete” Romo with a procession after his death last week.
The Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce launched its First Responder Gratitude Campaign on Monday to say “thank you” to our hospital workers, emergency first responders, and paramedics
The city of Santa Clarita’s Film Office has reported 13 productions filming in the Santa Clarita Valley aka "Hollywood North" the week of Monday, February 22:
The Main at 24266 Main Street in Old Town Newhall invites residents to share their original quotes to be displayed on the marquee as part of #TheMAINquotes campaign.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health on Sunday confirmed two additional cases of COVID-19 variant B.1.1.7 (U.K. variant), bringing the county's total of variant cases to 14.
REAL NAMES ONLY: All posters must use their real individual or business name. This applies equally to Twitter account holders who use a nickname.
0 Comments
You can be the first one to leave a comment.