On Thanksgiving night, the boys were in the living room, watching football. The girls were in the playroom, belting out Adele on karaoke. Specifically, my nieces. You haven’t heard “Someone Like You” until you’ve heard a 4-year-old sing it from the bottom of her heart while also dancing a sad, slow mournful dance.
What is it about sad songs, especially hit ones by Adele?
Just in case you don’t know the power of this song, “Saturday Night Live” did a sketch in which no one can listen to the song without crying–women, men, executives, janitors. We’re all united as we mourn in unison, “Never mind. I’ll find someone like you.”
It’s the “never mind” that makes it art.
“It’s really good to go sing, like, if you have trouble with a guy,” said my daughter. My 12-year-old daughter. Not exactly the kind of advice I want to hear from my offspring. “Maybe if you and Dad have a fight, you can sing it and you’ll feel better.”
So I bought it. And it is completely addictive. I especially like the bridge, which includes the line, “Regrets and mistakes, they’re memories made.”
The older I get, the more I treasure my regrets. For example, a couple of years ago, I had an epic meltdown over Thanksgiving weekend. I yelled at my grandmother in an elevator. I yelled at my husband and children while putting up the tree. That night the boys already had plans to go to a basketball game, but believe me, they couldn’t get out of the house fast enough. My daughter, bless her heart, stayed. We decorated the tree together while watching “The Polar Express.”
I don’t like the movie nearly as much as the book, but now, when its sad song, “When Christmas Comes to Town,” comes up on Pandora, I sing it proudly. Yeah, I screwed up big that year. Sorry, everyone.
I hope this will be a good season, full of nothing but tidings of comfort and joy. And if not, I have Adele.
