“You ask me how much I need you; must I explain? I need you, oh my darling, like roses need rain You ask how long I'll love you, I'll tell you true Until the Twelfth of Never, I'll still be loving you.” (‘The Twelfth of Never’/Paul Francis Webster)
The first time my little sister and I heard this song playing, was at a party my older sister Maxine was having at our house. Maxine was nine years older than me and her friends seemed to be like adults, although she was still in high school at the time. My little sister Francie and I had strict instructions, stay upstairs on our second floor, gather all the snacks we needed for a Saturday night, and DO NOT even think of coming downstairs even if a UFO landed in one of our bedrooms, and that ended with the usual BIG sister warning, (“…OR ELSE…)
Most of the night Francie and I were content to watch television from our green aluminum 1950’s contraption of a TV, we had plenty of junk food and of course, “pop” (Soda for non-Pittsburghese speaking Americans), and whatever those high school kids were up to, downstairs was fine and dandy…UNTIL, suddenly, the “rock and roll” music grew less “rock and roll” and moodier and make out! Something was up, I had to explain to my little sister, things are getting too quiet. Francie asked me if I thought some of Maxine’s friends might be kissing? I informed her, with the knowledge of being 2.5 older, that IN FACT, they were doing more than JUST kissing, they were MAKING OUT! (I had to describe in better detail my version between the difference of JUST kissing and MAKING OUT!) The phrase Grossed Out, had not found its footing in American jargon, yet, but both Francie and I were GROSSED OUT at he thought, but also quite intrigued, and even more importantly, though if we actually saw Maxine MAKING OUT, we could have a bit of blackmail on our older sister! “The Twelfth of Never,” was a hit by a singer named Johnny Mathis, a song played on American Bandstand, in which couples could dance slow and close, so Francie and I KNEW something bad, but awfully good to spy upon was going on. Both Francie and I with great stealth found a teeny tiny corner overlooking the living room, and low and behold, there was MY sister sitting on the lap of a guy named Butch, Making Out! Both Francie and I could only hold back our giggles for a few seconds and had to hurry from the scene because we were certain we would both throw up. I believe, when I Francie and I were in our 20’s did we relate that story to our sister Maxine!
Once again, more gun violence. In the NRA Nation of Texas, 5 dead, and even the good guys with guns, Texas Marshalls injured along with 9 other innocent lives. Oh, yeah and just a few hours after that violence (a white guy again, perhaps he witnessed too many videos games or had severe mental disabilities but could still purchase his assault weapons). In the Confederate nation-State of Alabama, where child molesters and rapists are fine fits for Supreme Court Justices and perhaps Senators, where the current Governor enjoyed wearing “blackface” for fun another incident of gun violence occurred at a football game. Riffles and firearms were used, (I suppose the local Wal-Mart no longer sold video games), not certain if the murderer was white, but if he wasn’t then, of course, THIS shooting WILL be a BIG DEAL! Both states, the NRA Nation of Texas, and the Confederate nation of Alabama pretend Jesus is watching over them, and all they do is the will of that particular Jesus, and no LAW, according to the moronic lawmakers which are largely American Republican Christian Taliban, also insist that their Bible supersedes the Constitution! For some reason, waking up and reading about more innocent deaths, caused by GUNS, GUNS, GUNS and those who rely on GUNS, GUNS, GUNS to solve problems…the song ‘The Twelfth of Never started blaring in my mind. I had always understood the message of the words, and as I grew older wished there really was a Twelfth of Never.
My older sister Maxine passed away from natural causes last year, and I miss her greatly. But my little sister Francie and I had a chance to say goodbye, share our peace and tell her we loved her. In Texas, and Alabama, the dead and injured were not quite able to do so, because a Gun in the Hand of a Person, who had little respect for the lives of others, and had the OFFICIAL lawful choice to purchase a gun (not a video game), murdered or attempted to murder anyone he wished! There will be no Twelfth of Never, once again for the INNOCENT who has died from the VIOLENCE of GUNS!
