Humor by John Christmann
Like Someone In Love
It is a beautiful, romantic song composed in the 1940s: simple, elegant, and melodic—a true classic. Too bad I butchered it moments before the wedding vows.
It happened this way.
In a sincere gesture of respect and significance, my son and I were asked to play a song at the wedding of two very important people in our lives. It is the second marriage for each of them; a wonderful occasion honoring love, commitment, and the happy melding of two families.
My son plays the saxophone. I play guitar, though not well, as the wedding couple can now attest.
But I was very honored to be asked, and the poignancy performing with my son was not lost on me. Unfortunately, while he has grown to develop a beautiful tone on his horn, I haven’t played the six-string in years. Clearly, the wedding couple did not know this.
With the help of his teacher, my son chose the perfect song to perform; a beautiful swing ballad entitled Like Someone In Love, written by Jimmy Van Heusen and performed by everyone from Frank Sinatra to Bjork. There might even be a version by Nine Inch Nails for all I know.
Prior to the wedding my son and I rehearsed. I was rusty reading the chart, but ultimately the dust of time cleared and I fell back into that which was once very familiar. Playing guitar again was much like riding a bike – we remember how to pedal even if we can’t remember how to work the gears. Or maybe, the brakes.
To my optimistic ear, our rendition of Like Someone In Love sounded pretty good. And until I started singing, even my son seemed pleasantly impressed. But I assured him that it was the emotional content that counted, not something as trivial as a key signature.
People in love weather the weather. Which is important because the outdoor wedding had to be moved inside due to a heavy downpour. But these were generous, loving people that have happily embraced life for years no matter what has been thrown at them; they were hardly deterred by dark clouds and heavy rain.
The wedding party relocated quickly to the nearby reception site, an historic old hotel, which we later discovered had been awarded a five-star paranormal rating by the Haunted Mansion Society of greater New York. At least that is what the plaque near the hotel bar claimed.
My son and I sat patiently in the vortex of paranormal activity just beside the makeshift alter quickly established at the foot of a sweeping staircase.
The reverend, who was the groom’s cousin, spoke proudly and eloquently of the union of two people in love. He spoke warmly of families brought together in joy. Thoughtful poems were recited, emotional words spoken aloud, and happy tears stifled in reverence, until at some point before the promise of I Do, we all felt like someone in love.
Which, as a great wedding would demand, was our cue to perform.
About the only thing I didn’t destroy was the count off. As respectful silence filled the room I whispered to my son in a sentimentally paced tempo: And one and two . . .
The strains from his deep saxophone were earthy and beautiful. I, on the other hand, forgot the accompanying chords. Then I got lost. By the time I recovered and the verse came back around to sing, I was off-key. It didn’t matter, because I couldn’t remember the words anyway.
Fortunately, my son carried me on the back of his fine playing. He finished the number alone with a sweet gravity of emotion well beyond his years, which captured the sentiment of the occasion perfectly. And I at least had the presence of mind to stop playing.
But here is the thing. No one really noticed but me. And, of course, my son. And my wife. And probably a few others who I caught wincing.
You see, in a life filled with embarrassing moments, which seem to show no sign of letting up, I forgot something vitally important: People notice your intentions, not your stumbles.
In the end, this experience was not about me. It was about two special people who had just celebrated their joyous union with friends and family members they truly cared about.
And even I couldn’t ruin that.
Lately, I find myself out gazing at stars, hearing guitars, like someone in love.
Sometimes the things I do astound me. Mostly whenever you’re around me.
Lately, I seem to walk as though I have wings, I bump into things, like someone in love.
Each time I look at you, I’m touched from above. And feeling like someone in love.
If only they could hear me sing this in the shower.
© 2011 Dadinthebox.com