BrooklynGirl

A Change Is Gonna Come

Friends--

Maybe it's the progesterone, but pretty much everything is moving me to tears these days. Today, after I read the saga of Getupgrrl's latest cycle, I tried to say a little prayer for a successful retrieval for her, though I'm not sure I believe in that whole God thing so I wasn't really sure how that would work out.

Then, the following song came on the radio, and I think it was God showing off his omnipotence, because only S/He could be behind this. It's just too perfect. Getupgrrl, this one's for you:

I was born by the river
In a little tent
And just like the river
I've been running ever since

It's been a long, long time coming
But I know a change gonna come
Oh, yes it is

It's been too hard living
But I'm afraid to die
I don't know what's up there beyond the sky

It's been a long, long time coming
But I know a change gonna come
Oh yes it will

Then I go to my brother
I say brother help me please
But he winds up knocking me
Back down on my knees

There's been times that I thought
I wouldn't last for long
But now I think I'm able to carry on
It's been a long, long time coming
But I know a change is gonna come
Oh, yes it will
--Sam Cooke

The People That You Love

When I went to college I was very lucky to fall in with a group of people who quickly became the closest friends I've ever had. We had a lot of fun together--we drank too much, danced too much, and talked too much, and studied not nearly as much as we should have. For the most part, we stayed friends after college, but there were some difficulties: one friend battled alcoholism, another eloped with a much older man none of us really like, and several came out of the closet in tortuous, awful ways. And then there's Elizabeth.

I was wary of Elizabeth for awhile because she's the sort of woman who is so tall, blonde, and beautiful that you felt even shorter, mousier, and unattractive just being in the same room with her. It seemed like she had the perfect family, the perfect life. She had a serious boyfriend all through college and talked about marriage and kids, which were terrifying to me at the time. She did not expect to have a career, really--maybe she would teach, but mostly she would be a wife and a mom.

Then things took an unexpected turn. She and her boyfriend broke up. And then got back together. And then broke up. As this dragged on, she worked as an elementary school teacher and eventually decided to go to graduate school, and she became an intellectual badass. She was still single and still wanted to be married with babies, but her graduate program fell all over themselves giving her awards and making her feel appreciated, and she found some happiness in that. When she was done, she got a job that she really wanted, and that she really likes. At the moment, the job calls for her to be in Dhaka, Bangladesh, where there’s a scary and violent general strike going on. I got an email from her this morning saying that she and learning a lot and happy to be there. And that she was safe. Thank God.

So, this particular Valentine is for you Elizabeth: I'm lucky to know you. Come home soon.