Surprises

One of the things that can make life interesting, and sometimes even fun, are the surprises that can appear.

I recently had a reminder of this. We were planning a party in my apartment for my granddaughter, for her high school graduation. My son and daughter-in-law told me they arranged to get some entertainment for the party, and it would be a secret. As the party date drew closer they said they had to tell me, as they needed a place for the entertainer to get dressed – they had hired a drag queen to perform!

What a surprise to me! I always thought of entertainment in a traditional way – like a singer, a band, or a comedian.

PS- Full disclosure- at my recent birthday, some family members sent an Elvis impersonator to the party. He was dressed in suitable sparkly clothes, and regaled me and my guests with old Elvis songs. He was a surprise, and I enjoyed him. But he fell within my preconception of an entertainer; a drag queen seemed altogether different.

I needed a place for Tom to get dressed, so he could come into the party fully outfitted. I hesitated to ask a neighbor if he could use her apartment to fix his make-up and change his clothes. Sometimes people in NYC are private and protective about their apartments. But as I started telling her about this need, before even asking if he could use her apartment, she said “have him come here” and “that sounds like great fun”. This surprised me, but perhaps it shouldn’t have – my neighbor, in her ‘80s, is outgoing and engaged in many aspects of NYC life. Also, the purple streaks in her gray hair, while they startled me when I first met her, made me think that she would have little problem with my request.

The party was a great success. Tom entered about half-way through, with heavy makeup, a store of colored wigs, flouncy outfits, panty-hose, and an ample, well-shaped bosom. She sang and danced, incorporating the balloons that we used to decorate the room. After being initially surprised, some of the guests sang along with her, and we all enjoyed the performance. Tom mentioned that she used to do these performances often, but had recently retired. This made me wonder what a drag queen performer does in retirement.

After she changed back to her regular clothes and left, the family member who had arranged for Tom noted that while he had recently retired from doing drag shows, he still continued in his regular job, a math teacher!

What a surprise that was!

As I get older, I want to keep in mind that assumptions that I live with—for example, that being a drag queen and being a math teacher can’t co-exist— can be wrong.  If I hold on to my traditional assumptions, I may miss some great pleasures. I look forward to more surprises.