Amy Lu's View

I think I literally jumped for joy. 

It was nineteen years ago, so my memory of that detail may be suspect, but I was definitely extremely happy when the bus arrived to take me and my friends to the Liberace Museum outside of Las Vegas. My friends were certainly surprised and amused by my exuberance. 

I appreciate that Liberace Day, observed today on February 4, is sparking this silly and sweet memory (even if I did have a flash of existential dread when I realized this Las Vegas trip was nineteen years ago!) 

I’m not sure why I was so excited by going to the Liberace Museum–I don’t consider myself a huge fan, although as a kid I think I used to play “Liberace” by putting fake fur on my head (used to make fuzzy pencil toppers or troll dolls) and pretending that I was flamboyantly playing piano (it was the Seventies). I did love Liberace’s flashiness, and was looking forward to experiencing some classic Las Vegas glam (sadly the museum has since closed). 

I think part of my joy was caused by relief–the outing was my idea and I was worried that the bus wasn’t going to come or that my plan would go awry in some way, and I didn’t want to ruin my friends’ afternoons. It was my version of a John “Hannibal” Smith (from the A-Team) “I love it when a plan comes together” moment.  

Mostly, I loved being on a “girl” vacation with my friends to celebrate my birthday. 

Whatever the sources of my joy, I loved that I embraced it and that I wasn’t afraid to show it–or that I didn’t let my mind get in the way of expressing an authentic, spontaneous feeling. 

If I can learn something from Liberace Day, I hope it’s to make more room for joy. 

If I can learn two things, I’ll add that I’m inspired to be a more entertaining piano player. Maybe I should start wearing fake fur on my head again.