She had a big birthday this week!
And so many people celebrated, it was kind of amazing. But that’s what you get when you bring so much joy, when you have so many fans, when so many people know that if you show up, well, it’s gonna be something truly special.
I mean she’s got this voice that can make you feel things. Deeply...or just for a laugh. That’s her – she keeps them in stitches, doubled in half...and that’s just the talking voice. The singing voice? Don’t get me started. Break your heart, make you laugh out loud, then break your heart again in a matter of seconds.
So, she’s got all that going on and on top of that, kinda brilliant, designing a decades long career and always at the top of her game. How do you do that?
Some people, very few, have that bizarre ability to make you feel like you’re their best friend and every day is a party to be shared, while at the same time being utterly, ultimately private. To combine the two is a high-wire act, I think, especially when both sides are equally true. Every day IS a party to be shared...or not, and that’s fine, too.
I’ve been a huge fan for decades now, to the point that she’s a part of my favorite memories...like the corners of mind. And the fact that I can say she’s my lovely sister and best friend, well that’s the icing on the birthday cake.
So, Happiest of Birthdays to a genuine, one-of-a-kind, they-broke-the-mold original! Everyone should be so lucky.
But there’s only one Robin Shirley, and she’s mine.
Good story.
– Robin Sloan