This is a classic for the stage, and having acted for eight years, I feel remiss that it's taken me THIS LONG to finally read this play. Especially when you consider that I was actually in one of Wilder's lesser known plays in the same pastoral vein, called "Happy Journey to Camden and Trenton." I was in the play in college, and only understood it when my director asked us all to close our eyes and imagine we were in a calm field. One of the characters was a tree, another a butterfly, another a stream that ran through the countryside, and another the sun that bathed everything in a warm, cleansing light. I know this seems out there for those who haven't read any Wilder, but after finally reading Our Town I FINALLY GET IT.
It's the simple things.
When all is said and done, at the end of your life, you may wish to return to the big moments in your life (births, weddings, etc.), but you will CRAVE the normal, everyday interactions that didn't mean anything at the time, but mean EVERYTHING in the end.
This play seemed particularly poignant as a dear friend of mine called with news that she and her husband were separating. After talking with her on the phone for an hour, I picked up the play to calm my nerves before falling asleep, and this line made me weep: "Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?—every, every minute?" I still get choked up.
So, read it. It's a short read, and it doesn't seem like you're reading anything for a while. But it will stick with you, I believe, until the end of your life. We all have so much to be grateful for, and so many moments every single day that are precious and sweet and fleeting.
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