It’s Not You, It’s Me

It’s Not You, It’s Me
Rachel Birdsell Curious Crow

Rachel Birdsell
Curious Crow

All good things must come to an end, and conversely all bad things must, too.

So, this is my final Curious Crow column.

Yes, I’m breaking up with you, dear reader. It’s not anything you’ve done. You’ve all been wonderful. There are a myriad of reasons I’m putting down my pen. One is that Rick Santorum recently said that his responsibility as a human being is to accept people for who they are, and that if Bruce Jenner says he’s a woman, then he’s a woman. If Rick Santorum, scourge of the LGBT community, is now accepting people for who they are, my work here is done. Also, if you feel a cool breeze blowing up your pant leg, it’s because Hell is now a bit icier than it was before.

The main reason I’m ending things is that it’s simply time to do so.

I’ve written for The Free Weekly for five years, which is about four years and nine months longer than I thought I would. Huge thanks to my first editor, Richard Davis, who cracked a bottle against my port side and launched me on my maiden voyage, to my current editor, Nick Brothers, and to Kent Marts for allowing me to continue through the editors in between.

The biggest thanks goes to all of you lovely readers who are the ones who’ve kept me going. Without your support, I would have given up years ago. Thank you for the encouraging emails, the discouraging emails, and the comments telling me what an idiot I am. Those of you in the latter group have given me more giggles than I knew I’d get from this adventure. Thank you for keeping me grounded by reminding me that my writing sucks, that I’m going to Hell, and that Jesus would probably poke me in the eye if he bumped into me in the grocery store.

Speaking of, for one final time to those of you who persist in thinking that I hate religion, hate people who aren’t like me, hate conservatives, etc., you haven’t been paying attention. I’ve explained my views to the point that explaining them further would be a lesson in the ridiculous. If you can’t grasp what I’ve been talking about by now, the problem might not be my writing.

I’ve made friends and even enemies as a result of this column, and I love you all. I know that the friends will remain, and I hope that the enemies can find a place of peace and will one day be able to remove the pins from the auburn-haired voodoo doll they keep nearby.

I will leave you with my very simple creed that we all can adopt and agree on, because it doesn’t require a deity, a figurehead, or a gathering place: be nice, laugh more, hug more, and love life and the people in it with all the energy you can summon.

—Rachel is a freelance writer and graphic artist. You can reach her at rabirdsell@gmail.com.

Categories: Commentary