The Unexpected

Several weeks ago, my friend Nancy of Midlife Mixtape asked me to write a post for "Still in Rotation," a series in which writers talk about albums from their past that they still listen to today, and one album came to mind immediately, "Steady On" by Shawn Colvin.

My story went up on her blog today and here's an excerpt:

My friend had a friend in from out of town and, after we finished playing a song, my friend leaned in and kissed her visitor, and I tensed, a physical reaction that came with no accompanying thought. I sat staring at them for a moment and then packed up my guitar and music, made an excuse and bolted.

In the story, I mention a friend and her girlfriend, my first girlfriend and Luisa and it is striking that the post went live today when I spent last night having drinks with those very women. The two unnamed lovers in my coming out story are still together today and remain two of my closest friends, so close in fact that we got married with them last October. My first girlfriend is a nearly daily part of my life as well, part of my chosen family. And Luisa, well, she's stuck with me for nearly 21 years. If you'd asked me 24 years ago what my life would look like, if I thought the players in my coming out story would still be part of almost all of my stories today, I would have never imagined it would turn out that way. But here we are - the connections shifting and growing stronger over the years.

Life is full of the unexpected. You see two people kiss and your life changes forever. You find friendship in the ruins of a romantic relationship. You meet a young woman at a concert and end up building a life together. Doesn't it make you wonder what is happening now that you might someday look back on and think, "That's when everything changed..."

Head over to Nancy's and read the full post.