Mood Change

On Friday, Lily and I were a few minutes late leaving for school. I was in a bad mood. She had stalled and stalled over breakfast, and I had kept saying: Now I'm not going to say this again, and then said it again and again, and none of the nagging actually sped up the breakfast consumption.

So we were flying up the street on our way to the subway, me ragged and irritable, Lily ragged and faux remorseful, and as we got to the curb the light changed, so we couldn't cross the street to get to the uptown subway entrance we were headed for. At just that instant one of the new "smart car" taxis slowed to a stop just in front of us. Lily looked up at me, expecting the no; I could see it in her eyes. She knew she'd given me a hard time, but she had been wanting to ride in one of these particular cabs for a while, and we both hate being late for school; it throws off the rhythm of her day.

I nodded at the driver, and opened the door for Lily, who announced as she entered, "I can't believe it's my first time in a smart car taxi! I will always remember this!" which made the cab driver look in the rear view mirror with a smile and made me smile, too, in spite of myself. As Lily dealt with her seatbelt, I settled into the seat, exhaling for what felt like the first time all morning. It was then I noticed the music: The Rolling Stones' "Time is on My Side."

The Rolling Stones are my favorite band. For some reason I haven't been listening to them much of late. In fact, I realized, as I sung along to the words very quietly, I haven't been listening to music much at all. Lily noticed me singing and asked me who the group was. When I told her the name and added how much I loved their songs, the cab driver met my eyes in the mirror and asked me if I wanted to hear the song from the beginning.

"It's a CD?" I asked, surprised.

"Yes," he said. The Stones are my favorite band. I saw them play in Hungary, where I am from, about four years ago. It was one of the great nights of my life."

"I saw them too," I said. "In Boston, for my aunt's sixtieth birthday, with my aunt, my sister, and my dad." We sat in silence listening to the rest of "Time is On My Side. When it had finished, the cab driver said, "Now I will play you a very beautiful song." I recognized the opening chords to "Lady Jane." When this was over, the cab driver asked me if I wanted to pick a song. There are so many I love--it was the Greatest Hits album. I could have chosen any one of a dozen.

"I think I'd like "Time on My Side" again, I said. And as the cab driver, Lily and I sang softly along, it seemed like it actually was.