Where it began
I can’t begin to know it
But then I know it’s growing strong
Was in the spring, then spring became the summer
Who’d have believed you’d come along?
"Sweet
Caroline" (1969)
Written and Performed by Neil
Diamond
Courtesy of Geffen Records
Under license from Universal Music Enterprises
Out of the blue today, I heard the song Sweet Caroline, and as always, I turned into a pool of melted butter. Now, I must say, I am mostly a rock ‘n roll fan, not a ballad lover. I was a Beatles geek, a Tom Petty groupie, a soul and blues and alternative aficionado. But this song had a very personal meaning for me. I fell in love for the first time just before as it became a hit. In fact, I was such a geek, I actually changed the lyrics when I sang it from Sweet Caroline to Sweet Terry Mine. Sad, ain’t it?
As a fifteen-year-old, I was the type of kid generally ignored by the boys. I had lots of girlfriends – I was a great confidant. I was also very much a nerd, the kind of person who took a book to football games, concerts, and into the tree in my front yard. So imagine my shock when I went on a trip to St. Augustine and fell in love with a surfer – and even stranger, he fell in love with me back. “Warmth, touching warmth, reaching out, touching me, touching you.”
I won’t go into the details, here. Suffice it to say, I have never been so crazy for anyone except my husband. There’s something about that first love that makes you bananas. And worse – it made me into a stalker. If you want to read the details, you can check out the slightly fictionalized version on my Web site (http://floridawendy.typepad.com/my_weblog/2005/11/old_boyfriends.html - originally published in South Dakota Review, Volume 42, No. 1, Spring 2004). Suffice it to say, some of those moments weren’t my best. But the beginning, where this song brought me, was so wonderful.
Still, the song has held up well, even if the relationship didn’t. Neil Diamond’s hit songs are too numerous to list and some of them, such as Solitary Man and Shilo were monster hits. But did you know he also wrote Red, Red Wine; Kentucky Woman – yes, the one covered by Deep Purple, and I’m a Believer – yes, the Monkees hit. Neil Diamond is in very prestigious company – According to Wikipedia, “He is considered to be the third most successful adult contemporary artist ever on the Billboard chart behind Barbra Streisand and Elton John.“ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Diamond )
As for me, I hear this song and turn into a teenager again. I don’t remember the bad parts anymore. I put those away. But what I got from that relationship, the parts that lasted, are so precious to me. I learned to surf (okay – in the interest of honesty, I never got very good, and the only surfing I do now is body surfing – and even at that I get beat up regularly). I learned to love the ocean. I learned to appreciate the sound of waves, the beauty of an empty beach, even on a rainy day.
I found my favorite place on earth, St. Augustine, and I go there all the time. I have a crowd of women friends who all love the beach. Me ‘n the girls hit the beach on a regular basis all year around, and I never, ever see the man who was once the love of my life. Frankly, I wouldn’t want to. Memories are so much better than the real thing. J
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