What We All Really Want

But she won’t understand

Why anyone would have to try

To walk a line when they could fly.

–“If She Knew What She Wants,”  The Bangles

Once, when I was going through a rough period, my counselor told me to stop fretting about things being a certain way (or not) because I didn’t know what I wanted.  His summary didn’t feel quite right, but I couldn’t say exactly what I wanted then, so I thought I really didn’t know what it was that I wanted. 

This week, I saw a reflection of that moment when someone decided to deflect attention from her own issues by announcing publicly that someone else didn’t know what he wanted.  He was too young, she thought.  Too inexperienced.  How could he possibly know what he wants? she asked.

But he wants what we all want.  Regardless of our sex, age, nationality, religion, race, and anything else that some people think makes any difference at all.

And I can finally put into words what I really want, what we all really want:

To be acknowledged, and to be loved as we are.