So there was this musical tribute show on earlier this month. They called it The Night That Changed America – “They” being the people who give out awards in the music/recording industry – and the night being February 9, 1964 – the night The Beatles first appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. The show this month had lots of young musicians covering old Beatles songs, and the two remaining Beatles – Paul and Ringo – singing up some old musical memories.
Yeah, I watched it. As I watched 50 years ago. And yeah, I followed The Beatles for many years until they went on to other things, and so did I.
And in addition to going separate ways from John, Paul, George and Ringo, life has changed dramatically for those of us who were around then (about 100 million people have been added to the population of the US since 1964; not all are births that have happened since then, but most are; these are people who have no recollection of The Night That Changed America, or who The Beatles were, or why they had such an impact on music, and culture, and a generation in general).
What we have seen in that time! And what we have done! The immensity of it all is stunning. But almost as gob-smacking is the ability we have shown to maneuver through those changes and challenges, and come out the other side. One of my favorite writing themes is how people do (or do not) manage to endure through even cataclysmic change.
So I’m re-starting this blog to talk about how life has changed for those of us who were around back then, and how to celebrate this changing life or change it or cope with it. I’ll comment and critique. This is not a blog to say “remember when” or re-live the past, though; I want to help us all live an excellent life right now, today. I’ll share the problems we’ve encountered, and the “life hacks” I find.
And I invite yours.