reprise

at breakfast this morning the boys announced excitedly the release of a 'new' song that i absolutely must come watch the video for. so, after i finished my yogurt i sat down in front of luke's computer to watch a seven minute youtube video of 'we are the world'.

i knew i'd heard a familiar melody coming from behind those french doors as i lingered in bed succumbing to sunday morning sleepiness.

the original 'we are the world' came out in 1985, when i was the boys' ages. eleven to be exact. and i remember listening to it on a 45 single, over and over again. and sitting in front of mtv waiting to see the video; they still played videos in the 80's, pre-reality tv.

i loved the song then as much as the boys do now. as they comb the artists' faces in the video, easily paused and rewinded and replayed at their whim on youtube, i remember doing the same at every opportunity.

but here we are, twenty-five years later, and i wonder if we're moving closer together or further apart as a global community. it's winter olympics time and what a fitting time for the re-release of a song about collaboration, i speculated.

but wait, what's this about team america? maybe it's not.

my love for the olympics is mainly about the celebration of accomplishment, the passion of young athletes, the pursuit of dreams. and, i know this will rile some of you nationalists up, but i could give two shits about how many gold medals america takes home. personally, i don't care which nation 'wins more' or 'comes out on top'; i really don't. i love the opportunity, in fact, to celebrate the triumphs of a world of athletes.

and i imagine - hope - that i'm not alone in that sentiment. i just would like to see the world more aligned in celebrating each others' national triumphs and aiding in their trials, a little more often than every 25 years. so much focus on what makes us all different, and establishing a hierarchy of power, drains and saddens me.

d: may the olympic spirit transcend and the musical reprise resonate.
b: i am a proud citizen of the world.
g: a world diverse in culture, religion, geography and people.