OK, so Paul Simon was never my lover and we didn't meet on the street, well, we've actually never met, but our connection is real, it's real I tell you.
I was a sophomore in high school when I discovered the genius of Paul Simon. He's a little white man with an enormous amount of soul. This genius, I discovered, gave birth to a sort of crush. I call it a crush because I don't know what else to call it. I felt these waves of emotion when I heard his music, sometimes I cried, sometimes I had to dance. I held as an ideal what I perceived Paul to be, a quiet intellectual overflowing with art, wisdom, humor, curiosity and of course, soul.
I've grown older, I've married (now that I think about it I married someone a little like Paul, a musician, intellectual, soulful) and have a family. Since I've started my family I haven't thought about Paul that much until last night. There was a special on KUED. The Library of Congress was honoring Paul Simon. There was a concert with a number of artists paying tribute to Paul in both song (his songs) and word. All the old feelings came rushing back. I was once again 16 in my parents attic bedroom playing my father's records on the turn table.
At one point a gospel duo sang a rousing version of 'Gone at Last'. As they exited the stage they shouted, "We love you Paul!". It was all I could do to not yell out, "I love you Paul!". My husband was sitting next to me and as if he could hear my thoughts he said, "You think that old guy is sexy?".
I don't know, maybe it is sexiness or maybe I'm just grateful that there is a Paul and he has shared his talents with me. So, thank you Paul. Thank you for making me feel. You put words and rhythm to the emotions I can't articulate. You make me happy, think, grateful and boogie. I will always be a fan and I guess I too am still crazy after all these years.
Have you ever felt this way about someone or am I a lone weirdo?
2 comments:
Martha! This is a GREAT post! You're not a wierdo at all...I've totally felt this way about artists, musicians and others...and not just Mariah Carey..j/k...sorta. Truthfully, I feel like this about Mary Chapin Carpenter all the time. (of course feeling this way about strangers and having a spiritual communion with them could just be a familial trait) But I don't think so, I think its just the capacity humans have for experiencing connection through means that extend beyond what we can rationally and imperically explain. Maybe that is weird, but it is also WONERFUL!
I didn't realize how much music really inspired me until I was at an Indigo Girls concert and was literally in tears just having them be so close that I could almost touch them and feeling the emotion of their music so intently. I was amazed at how star struck I was and how much that music played a part in so many areas of my life. Tears. Don't tell!
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