Rose was in the middle of watching the second season of The Good Wife. Now, resting on her bed, something struck her. The hero of the show, Alicia Florrick, was going through heart-wrenching devastation, but they never showed her cry. She was admirable, strong, succinct, tough – but she never collapsed into an emotional release.
Rose remembered a movie she had seen years before where the hero, a television anchor, collapsed on her bed and cried every time she found herself alone. Then she pulled herself back together and focused.
Rose could keep it together if she needed to. But now she let down. She had felt blocked and lethargic. Now she sensed emotion and invited it to talk to her. It spoke, not in words, but in wails. She let it fly.
Her husband Tony heard her and came in to rub Rose’s feet as her emotions erupted. When did he stop feeling threatened by the power of her releases? Rose adored him for that.
The tide turned, the storm subsided and Rose felt whole. She turned on Pandora radio: Christine Perri’s song Human came on. Unlike Alicia, but like Christine, Rose could be a good machine, but let herself be human.
These are the lyrics.
Human
I can hold my breath
I can bite my tongue
I can stay awake for days
If that’s what you want
Be your number one
I can fake a smile
I can force a laugh
I can dance and play the part
If that’s what you ask
Give you all I am
I can do it
I can do it
I can do it
But I’m only human
And I bleed when I fall down
I’m only human
And I crash and I break down
Your words in my head, knives in my heart
You build me up and then I fall apart
‘Cause I’m only human
I can turn it on
Be a good machine
I can hold the weight of worlds
If that’s what you need
Be your everything
I can do it
I can do it
I’ll get through it
But I’m only human
And I bleed when I fall down
I’m only human
And I crash and I break down
Your words in my head, knives in my heart
You build me up and then I fall apart
‘Cause I’m only human
I’m only human
I’m only human
Just a little human
I can take so much
‘Til I’ve had enough
‘Cause I’m only human
And I bleed when I fall down
I’m only human
And I crash and I break down
Your words in my head, knives in my heart
You build me up and then I fall apart
‘Cause I’m only human
And the video: (Al – no vampires on this one.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2X43XF8247E
Maybe, by the time Rose got to season five of The Good Wife, Alicia would break down and have a good cry. If so, would Peter (or Will) be able to rub her feet and be there with her when she did? In the meantime, Rose would live her humanity now.
You’re invited to this party. Speaking Strong and authenticity isn’t just about being tough all the time. It’s also about honoring your right to be human. Rose’s emotional alchemy moved by it’s own path, not a linear one, but this is a good tool should you want one. Emotional Alchemy Through the “Love Letter”
