At sunset I heard Joni Mitchell sing “Two Grey Rooms” on my drive home. The blues and corals swept the sky, my heart swirled with the unexpected changes, harmonies, and the vivid story. Perfection. Absolute perfection. Although I own the album, this was my first listen. I love firsts.
After catching up with a friend on the phone, one of those awesome conversations that are more like a trip than a talk, a melody wafted around my mind. I tried to corral it, but only a snip let me grab and then it disappeared, leaving five words to help me recall it. That wasn’t enough so I dialed Carmel to get the name. We sang this song together in May, but who pays attention to titles?! She didn’t pick up, so I hit a random letter of the alphabet on my iPod and pressed play, landing in the “Twe’s”. I fast forward through the “Twelve O’Clock” in French, midi minuit, then “Twelve Thirty” by The Mamas & The Papas…I have absolutely NO recollection of how they got in there. Weird. Moving quickly on through “Twenty Past Four”, “Twenty Past ten”, and “Twenty Past two”, in French, I hear three piano chords, and let the music play. Gorgeous chords. Sunset chords. The end of a beautiful day chords. Then Joni began, “Tomorrow is Sunday…” and instantly, I know. I just know…the answers to my questions today.
I drive through the serene camel hills, past the blissful delta, on home. Today is my grandma Rosa’s birthday. She passed on several years ago. Happy Birthday, Grandma. I pull in the driveway. My phone dings to tell me I have a text. It’s from Carmel: “Falling Slowly”. She names the song that led me to Joni Mitchell tonight. Sneaky…Thank you for that. Joni’s been on repeat for nearly an hour, and I’m ready to dream this song.
