Once upon a time, a boy played this song for me on a night I had received a crushing rejection. It was something that I thought would threaten my college career, financially speaking. I was devastated.
Although I had grown up listening to Simon & Garfunkel, famously belting along to “Cecilia” using an eggbeater as a microphone on top of my parents’ bed, I had never listened to the lyrics of this song until that night.
Sail on silver girl
Sail on by
Your time has come to shine
All your dreams are on their way
See how they shine
I love the original version of the song, of course. Simon & Garfunkel could take up a whole category in my music appreciation blog that doesn’t exist yet. But I got a Russell Watson CD as a music promo during my TV/radio career years ago, and his recording is on it, and every time I played that CD I forgot about it until it came on and stopped me in my tracks. I have a very distinct memory of sitting on the one step in our old house with a kitchen towel in my hand. It was night, and everyone else was asleep, and I sat there, listening, and crying.
Two weekends ago I went to see my friend Lexi skate in an ice skating competition for adults. Just knowing the hours of dedication and risk and skill that go into preparing for that event made me choke up every time someone took the ice. And then a woman skated to this song, and I might have let a tear escape my eye. I have been humming the song just under the surface ever since.
You’re welcome.
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