Part of my ambivalence, of course, stems from Celine's very public struggles to get and stay pregnant -- and the fact that she succeeded (twice, including a set of twins), where I did not. As I wrote in a previous blog post:
She announced her first pregnancy in 2000, while I was mired deep in the muck of infertility treatment... I vividly remember lining up at the clinic early in the morning for our ultrasounds (it was like an assembly line) & hearing one of her songs on the radio they were piping through the office, while reading about her pregnancy in the morning newspaper. “I’ll bet SHE never had to stand in line at 7 a.m. with her butt hanging out of a hospital gown, " I said to the girl in line next to me. And of course, not long after she finally had the baby in January 2001, she shouted her joy to the world -- including in a song ("A New Day"), which the radio played ad nauseum, while I was licking my wounds & trying to revise my life plans to NOT include children. Thanks, Celine...It was a strange feeling to see that baby, her son, Rene-Charles, all grown up at 15, escorting his elderly grandmother into the Notre-Dame cathedral, supporting his widowed mother & eulogizing his father. And thinking that Katie would be that much older than him still (17 now, and no doubt waiting for early acceptance into the university(s) of her choice right now...).
The relentless march of time is a strange and wonderous thing to witness, sometimes....
I also have celebs that stir up bitter memories during our time in the trenches. Their pregnancies and seeming life success was difficult to hear about as I was struggling with so many unknowns.
ReplyDeleteI feel for Celine. It's clear she's grieving. Ive never been much of a fan and I'm not one for elaborate shows. But it sounds like she's grieving the best way for her and her family. If the end result is healing and moving beyond, then I'm glad she has this time.
I'm not much of a fan myself, but I feel for anyone forced to grieve so publicly. I certainly couldn't handle it.
ReplyDeleteWhile I don't really have any celebrities who stir up feelings about my time in the trenches, I do have a couple of coworkers whose FB posts occasionally do- one in particular, who was pregnant at the same time as I was with my fourth pregnancy. She had her baby on my due date. Every time I see a picture of her daughter, I am reminded that I would have a child exactly that same age. It's tough. :(
I've never been a fan, but fortunately haven't been confronted with her. Except from in discussions with my niece, who was a fan about ten years ago, and who has at least learned from Celine a) a little about infertility , and b) a little about cystic fibrosis. So I guess I have to be grateful for that.
ReplyDeleteI am however sorry that this brings up all those memories.
Today reproductive technologies have changed the life of so many people.
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