Blackbird
The things I think about at the dentist....
This morning, as I was driving to the dentist, the Beatles' song, Blackbird came on. Paul McCartney wrote it in response to the Civil Rights movement in the USA in the 1960s. I hate the dentist. I've worked on my feelings about the dentist. I tolerate the dentist because going to the dentist is important. When I'm actually in the chair, I think about ANYTHING else.1 Today I thought of the song playing on the radio as I drove in: "Blackbird."
When Paul McCartney introduced "Blackbird" he said, “Way back in the Sixties, there was a lot of trouble going on over civil rights, particularly in Little Rock. We would notice this on the news back in England, so it’s a really important place for us, because to me, this is where civil rights started. We would see what was going on and sympathize with the people going through those troubles, and it made me want to write a song that, if it ever got back to the people going through those troubles, it might just help them a little bit, and that’s this next one.”
As I was sitting in the dentist chair, I thought of the young man who helped me in January. My car had stalled and he stopped to help me. Then, I remembered another young father singing to his dying infant son, and singing “Blackbird.”2
[Verse 1]
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life, you were only waiting
For this moment to arise
[Verse 2]
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these sunken eyes and learn to see
All your life, you were only waiting
For this moment to be free
[Chorus]
Blackbird fly
Blackbird fly
Into the light
Of a dark, black night
Blackbird fly
Blackbird fly
Into the light
Of a dark, black night
[Verse 3]
Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings and learn to fly
All your life, you were only waiting
For this moment to arise
[Outro]
You were only waiting
For this moment to arise
You were only waiting
For this moment to arise
And, now I'm sending these words to you: “All your life, you were only waiting for this moment to be free."
Ironically, I've compared going to psychotherapy like going to the dentist.3 Sometimes you just have to open your mouth and let someone else take a look. It's not fun. But, it's important. You can be free. You can seize this moment to be free.
This goes back to my childhood abuse. Frequently, a hand was held over my mouth to keep me quiet. Many other survivors I know struggled wearing a mask during COVID. I understood that struggle. Although I had to overcome that fear of having my mouth covered while skiing in the cold mountains. If it’s freezing I wear a cover to protect my face from frostbite. I notice it, but I can consciously overcome any latent issues of having my mouth covered.
By the way, after the dentist examined my mouth and teeth he said, “You are absolutely perfect.” I laughed and said, “I’m going to quote you on that! Next time I get pulled over, I’ll tell the officer that my dentist says I’m perfect.”