Sure. The editor breezily strides by the "bullpen" and cheerily says, "Let's do a 'That Was the Year That Was' issue." Easy. Piece of cake. Given the year that's past, that's like saying to medical students, "Your final is to take out your own appendix. Rubbing alcohol, a scalpel, some cotton swabs and some sutures are under your desk. You have ten minutes. Go."
Easy. Piece of cake.
This was an odd year to be an American. The year started with the inauguration of a president that it took until about November of this year for news organizations to say, "Well, maybe he did get the votes in Florida. . . kind of. . . ." The year focused on a young intern that disappeared and the mendacity of her erstwhile boss and lover. The year saw a television program called Buffy, the Vampire Slayer stage a musical -- and that without Ma and Pa Brady stepping in to help out with the high school variety show.
This was an odd year to be an American. The year included the most horrific act of international terrorism outside of declared war in living memory. True heroes died in the act of saving the lives of complete strangers. The result was a war-time call . . . to spend more? Buy cars at 0% financing. The result was a military action like no other in history -- the greatest industrial, military giant in the world battling against a loose tribe of religious fanatics in the least industrialized regions of the world.
The world of theatre saw the rise of a Broadway musical constructed from a film. The world of film saw the best movies made as family fare -- Shrek, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings. The world of television saw the resurrection of friends old and new -- from the Carol Burnett Show reunion to the renewed popularity of Rachel, Ross, et al.
Putting this year into a nice easy package? Piece of cake.
Several years ago, this writer managed a theatre company that launched several national tours with each troupe rehearsed and equipped to play a repertory of multiple plays. There was a troupe in rehearsals that sniped and argued, boding badly for what their lives would be on the road. On the way to rehearsal with this troupe, this writer witnessed an auto accident in which a large 18-wheel truck smashed into a sedan carrying an Hispanic family with a number of small children. The small sedan was obviously totaled. At first it was unclear if the car's occupants were injured. (Everyone came out well.) Real life helped provide perspective. It was a lesson for the troupe -- how Actor X cracked his knuckles was a pretty small affair when people were fighting simply to live.
This has been a year in which a few million babies have been born. A few million people have left us. The song says, "I'm not so sure 'bout a life after death, but I'm sure there's a death after life." This has been a year in which stem-cell research and human cloning have raised the prospect of challenging death in a major way.
In the midst of this year, we continue to tell our stories for audiences where we can find them -- in a dark theatre, on the street, in the circus tent, in the little box in the living room. Those stories provide the means by which we can start to sort out the craziness of a year like this one. We have stories to tell. We have a work to do.
The year that was? By and large, it wasn't a good year. May it, like those who left us, rest in peace. The year ahead?
Bring it on.
©2002 Nathan Thomas
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