Wednesday, October 13, 2010

The Song Remembers When. . .


Conversation this morning over breakfast:

Emily: "Mom, we're singing a song in choir: 'Song Sung Blue.' Do you know it? "

Me: "Oh yeah, I love Neil Diamond: Song Sung Blue, La lala la la la or something. Let's look it up on itunes."

And there it was.
Suddenly, I wasn't in Australia any more.



"Song sung blue. . . "

I am in Fort Greeley Alaska, and it's 1979. My socks have slipped down and are bunched up at the bottom of my boots - my water boots, because it's spring time and everything is wet with melting.

"everybody knows one. . ."

I find a marble I lost in our golden shag carpet.

"Me and you, are subject to the blues now and then. . . "

My hands are stained yellow from picking dandelions. I can taste the dandelions because I forgot to wash my hands before I ate grilled cheese sandwich (with tomato soup.)

"Weeping like a willow. . ."

I can feel the sun on my shoulder, always coming in at an angle, making long shadows like it does up north. I can hear the theme song from "Mash" in the background.


"Funny thing, but you can sing it with a cry in your voice. . . "

My bell bottoms (the ones with the heart patches on the knees) are wet from playing in the run-off, so my mom tells me to take them off before I take a nap - in my wonder woman underoos. I am looking at my "Bambi" book and listening to the tape, listening for the chimes "trrrring" to turn the page, but I'm tired and never even make it past "your mother can no longer be with you - man has taken her away. . ." before drifting to sleep on my Holly Hobby bed spread.

"And before you know it, start to feeling good. . ."

My dad is walking through the door in his army uniform. Becki and Kim and I are singing "I'm so glad when Daddy comes home" and climbing up onto his lap as he sits in his orange velour rocker/recliner (the one my mom bought him for Father's Day). He manages to take off his glasses before we get to "a great big kiss."

"You simply got no choice. . . "


Emily: Yep, that's the one.
Me: Yeah. I think I'll buy the whole album.

Thank you, Neil Diamond, for writing the background music of my childhood.

10 comments:

Kimberly said...

oh I think you lived my childhood...You forgot trying to eat the super tart cranberries and crying when we put our frozen feet up to the heater in the basement...

Anthony and Kristie said...

That song brings back good memories of every family road trip. I love the new family picture, very clever:)

Juli said...

Oh, you're right Kim. I was going to say something about the taste of very small strawberries too. Nothing is better.

Juli said...

By the way, do you remember when that heater in the basement sparked and burned a little hole in the yellow shag carpet? Mom just stuck some electrical tape on the cord and called it good. :-)

Julie said...

That was poetry:)made me feel like a kid again. Loved it.

beck said...

I have his greatest hits. Ethan loves 'Sweet Caroline...bah bah bah'.
Do you remember when I tried to jump off the couch downstairs and I chipped my front tooth? Or watching 3-2-1 Contact?

Michelle said...

Love the new family picture!! Looks like you guys are having a BLAST down under!!

Angie said...

We call it road music. I got my dads tapes at one point and played them over and over and over for years and years. He had recorded them from records after he got home from his mission. The record had slipped and repeated one word two times but was otherwise perfect. When I bought the CD years later it made me crazy that Neil baby sung it "wrong" now. Took years to reprogram the song in my head.

No wonder you and Shon are the perfect pair. You were both raised on Neil Diamond. And I'm sure a healthy dose of John Denver too then.

Juli said...

Neil, John Denver, the BeeGees, ABBA, and Anne Murray. And add 321 Contact to that! Do you remember that guy dressed in black with toilet paper for eyes and a mouth! Freaky.

Unknown said...

I wonder what music our kids are going to remember?