Amy Lu's View

I recently realized it’s been 35 years since I was an exchange student in Winchester, England. 

I took a circuitous journey down memory lane to arrive at this startling realization. The first step was when I heard the Kate Bush song “December Will Be Magic Again” playing on the Current (our amazing local public radio music station.) “Aww,” I thought, “I first heard that song when I was studying abroad in England.”

That led me to reminiscing about music I listened to during this big adventure. (And it WAS a big adventure for 20 year old Amy to be living in another country for three months–up until then I had barely been outside the county I was born in). And I thought, “Hey, wasn’t there a song I really loved that I could never track down when I was back home?* What WAS that song?”

Then it came to me like a flash and I was getting ready for bed…”Wasn’t there a prominent line in the song ‘We share memories’? And didn’t the song have something to do with Ruby Blue? Can’t remember if that was the band or the song title…”

Luckily, I didn’t have to remember exactly, because those few pieces were enough for Google to track down the song: “Can it Be?” by the band Ruby Blue. 

I can’t describe the powerful feeling of remembering (even partially) that song after all these years, seemingly out of nowhere, and then the thrill of Google being able to tell me what the song was (there is even a Wikipedia article about the song and artist). I didn’t actually try to listen to the song until the next day and although it isn’t on Spotify, I was able to find it on YouTube music. As I first started listening I wasn’t sure it was the right song, but soon I heard the “We share memories” bit.

Since I only really remembered the chorus of the song, I was a little nervous about listening to it again: Would I still like it? Would it still speak to me 35 years later? Happily, the answer is “yes”. I don’t remember why I loved it in the first place. I definitely loved the sound–at the time I couldn’t believe it wasn’t a 10,000 Maniacs song, and I was (and still am) a big fan. I also wonder if it was partly because I was struck by the line “Can it be that you’ll wait for me?” I can imagine Young Amy pining for Young Chad and feeling like that line spoke to our then long-distance relationship. When I was twenty, three months sometimes felt like an eternity to be apart from my new beau. 

Anyway, in the midst of rediscovering this song, I actually stopped to think about how many years ago it was when I was a student in England. Even though there isn’t any intrinsic meaning to zeroes or fives I always regard anniversaries that end in them as more significant, so it feels a little cosmic that the strings of the interwebs and the universe let me back to that song now. 

“Cosmic” is just my lazy way of saying that this all feels special and important, although I can’t really articulate why. It’s a combination of reminiscing about a special and unique experience I had, being rocked by the passage of time, marveling at the power of music and technology to help me time travel, and pondering how Chad and I are still together and how we and I have and haven’t changed. 

It also seems rather meta that I was able to find the song because I remembered the line “we share memories” and then the song triggered all these memories about my experience as an exchange student. The memories are warm and fuzzy (due to the passage of time and likely also all the snakebite and black I drank) and all jumbled together. I have memories of incredible historic sites I saw, and lovely friends I met (okay these memories are definitely aided by photos) and quirky memories, like those of the pants I wore several times a week because I tried to pack light. When I left Winchester I gave those pants away to make room in my suitcase and because I was soo sick of them I never wanted to see them again (of course I would love to see them now). 

I’m also thinking about how sharing memories means so much more to me now than it did when I was twenty. I have almost three times as many to share (assuming I can remember most of my 55 years) and I appreciate them more now, especially those of my mom and my sister and others who I can no longer create new memories with. 

Thankfully I’m still getting to experience big and little moments with wonderful people that will add to my store of memories to be nostalgic about.  

*This was pre-internet, and once the internet was a thing, I think I tried to find it but didn’t have any luck and then eventually forgot about my quest. I’m not sure why I didn’t just buy a cassette tape or CD when I was in England–maybe it was too expensive for me?