Old and New . . .

I received the Banner yesterday and saw in the Obituary column a name I would never have considered to be a candidate for the paper.  It was John Lieux.  I last saw John at our 50th high school reunion in New Roads in 2008.  I recall John as his jovial self and hale and hardy.  But I also recall his wife saying he had had a by pass operation.

It was distressing news to me  that he had passed away.  He was a contemporary.  We went to LSU together though we seldom met as he went his way and I mine.  My class mates are slipping away, one here and another there.

I posted a comment in the Obituary book at the Ourso Funeral Home in Gonzales, Louisiana.  There I saw a name I had not seen since my early days of LSU, Allen Bello.  Allen was one of my high school running buddies though he went to Poydras and I to St Josephs.  Ironically, both schools are closed though St Josephs Academy has morphed into Catholic High of Pointe Coupee, a different school plant and location but still in town.  There is no public high school in New Roads now days.

I looked up Allen noting a Lake Charles address.  Found his phone number so I called him.  We had a nice conversation going down memory lane.  We talked about the different class members we knew, had seen or communicated with. 

Allen told me since his mother died he did not visit New Roads much any more.  The connection was lost, the reason to return was gone.  I said we still went there three or four times a year.

It was a good nostalgia trip.