Young Forever

"We can dance, until we die
You and I, will be young forever."

--Katy Perry, "Teenage Dream."

I'm currently obsessed with a cover of the above song, performed by the band, The Rescues:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5OLF6d4-Qcs.

My friend Gabriel Mann is in that band, and he is one of the most talented musicians I know. It's fun seeing him in his element. I also love the soul and sweetness of this arrangement. The original is fun and poppy, and both have their place.

Currently I'm caught somewhere between the bliss of living a teenage dream and the fear of falling... in love.

I'm not a teenager anymore. After a few giant heartbreaks, the act of letting myself fall in love is pretty fucking scary. On the one hand, the person who will be my life partner will provide a comfort like no other: a soothing that will replace the fear. Getting there is equivalent to jumping across a gigantic chasm full of dashed hopes, failed relationships, lonely nights, and doubt. But there is only one way to the other side. The reward will only be given to those who are brave enough to take the risk to get across, even if it means falling into that chasm and having to climb out... again.

The hope is that, having been through the heartbreaks before, having been "in love" and hopeful, having made plans for the rest of my life with another person, I am a little wiser. Maybe this time, instead of jumping with my eyes closed and fingers crossed, hoping to make it to the other side, the person I fall in love with will help me build a bridge. Maybe I know myself well enough after all the heartbreak that I will make good decisions. Maybe I trust myself enough to know that I will survive, even if I fall into the chasm again.

I have a few quotes displayed in my office, and one is by my favorite First Lady. I know you're guessing Hillary, but it's actually Eleanor.

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do."

Mrs. Roosevelt: I will be strong, courageous, and confident!

And lest the tenor of this posting seem totally sad and pathetic...

Here's a little more of that song that I listen to in all its versions, dedicated to someone with the most amazing eyes I've ever seen and more freckles than you could ever count:

"You make me
Feel like I'm livin' a
Teenage dream
The way you turn me on
I can't sleep
Let's run away and
Don't ever look back,
Don't ever look back!

My heart stops
When you look at me
Just one touch
Now baby I believe
This is real
So take a chance and
Don't ever look back,
Don't ever look back!"

And for a Scandinavian take on things: http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/u/tkjunkka/love.html


peace.