I didn’t watch the Oscars.

After last year’s “Slap” incident I wasn’t feeling the need to introduce that drama into my living room this week.

I assumed that I’d catch up later, if need be. Though, truth be told, I didn’t really think I was missing out on anything earth-shattering.

Little did I know that Lady Gaga would choose that moment, on that night, in this climate, to mark our bingo cards for 2023 with a stark reminder of humanity and why it’s truly important to be a “human being” and not just a “human doing.”

At the start of her performance, she started off with a short introduction. She said:

“I think we all need each other. We need a lot of love to walk through this life.”

She continued:

“And we all need a hero sometimes. There’s heroes all around us in unassuming places. But, you might find that you can be your own hero, even if you feel broken inside.”

If my heart could have beat outside of my body like one of those old-school cartoons where it beats, pushing outside of the chest for all the world to see? It would have.

I felt seen.

And I felt loved.

And the moment she started singing, I felt tears dripping down my face.

I’ve been coping with Long Covid for several months. And while I don’t think I’m broken inside, there are days where I feel utterly broken and unlike myself. Where I begin to doubt my ability to return to a semblance of normal, of my previous life. Where I will be sick tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that. I have been placing one foot in front of the other for so many days, so many weeks, and, yes, so many months now, that this message from Lady Gaga hit right in the feels.

We need love to get us through this thing we call life.

Love from partners, from family, from friends, from ourselves, and from, yes, strangers.

It’s all part of the magical puzzle of finding our way and feeling seen, being seen, and being of benefit to others.

I have experienced great love in the past several months. I have not walked this path alone and I have not left myself without love. I’ve been sent flowers. I’ve had meals made for me. I’ve been texted reminders of love and appreciation. I’ve had medicine purchased and delivered. I’ve had offers and offers of “How can I help?” And people I don’t even know ask my family how I’m doing, week after week. Love shows itself in many ways.

But still, her message stayed with me for days.

You see, with just a few words and a powerful, impactful moment in pop culture, Lady Gaga reminded us all of the need for love and community and acceptance in our every day.

And maybe, just maybe, now that we’ve marked this moment off on our bingo cards, we’ll have a few more moments where we become an unexpected hero to someone who needs the love we have to give, or a hero to ourselves when we turn that love inward.

It’s not asking too much. It’s asking just enough.

~