[applause]
[music]
[applause]
CATHY: I was the court jester, the waitress, the cook,
the errand runner, the house cleaner, the snuggler,
[giggles]
the organizer, the chauffeur and the hand holder.
I never resented a minute of it and I never once
felt it was a burden.
I watched her keep a sense of humor,
deny pity parties and simply do what she needed to do
to get through six months of terrible
and another five and a half years of not so great,
and all of it with that adorable smile.
CATHY AND MARCY: In 2015...
MARCY: Oh, can I tell the story?
CATHY: Of course. [chuckles]
MARCY: It all started with a routine mammogram.
CATHY AS MAMMOGRAM TECHNICIAN: Step up to the machine please.
A little closer.
A little bit closer.
Now, lean in please,
Chin up, right arm back,
right arm up high.
A little higher please, thank you.
That's very good. Move your head up a little bit.
Left arm, put your left hand over here on this handle.
Grab the handle. That's good.
Okay now, lean in a little bit more,
and a little bit more.
Please turn your body to the left.
The other left.
All right, now move your left foot.
Move your left foot to the left.
All right.
Excuse me, but I'm going to have to pull a little bit,
and you're going to start to feel the machine closing,
a little bit more, a little more,
a little more pressure.
MARCY: Does this thing ever get stuck?
CATHY AS TECHNICIAN: Uh, not as much as the old machines used to.
Now, please take a deep breath and hold it.
Don't move. Hold it, hold it.
Relax. All done.
[deep sigh]
MARCY: They did see something and they did a biopsy.
And it was after this biopsy, wrapped in a stretchy, itchy, bandage
that I set off from DC to teach a Ukulele workshop in Tennessee.
CATHY: I want you to have a great time.
Everything's gonna be OK.
You call me the second you hear anything.
And, we'll just talk as soon as that happens, you got it?
MARCY: Got it.
CATHY: I love you. MARCY: I love you.
MARCY: As luck would have it, I was standing in front
of a group of eager ukulele students when my doctor called.
I excused myself and took the call.
[deep sigh]
MARCY: So, it's positive?
Positive in a negative way?
[audience laughs]
Mmmm.
[deep sigh]
Well thank you.
I know these calls must be hard to make.
Looks like you got the short end of the stick today, didn't ya?
Okay.
Goodbye.
[deep sigh]
My doctor said I would need surgery, chemotherapy and radiation.
[deep sigh]
But I had to go back to work.
My ukulele students were waiting.
Some people think of their cancer experience as a journey.
Well, I know journeys.
Thanks to music, I've been around the world
to Australia, China, England,
France, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Malaysia,
New Zealand, Palestine, Papua New Guinea,
uh...Scotland, South Africa, Vanuatu, Wales
and...oh, Canada.
Now in my mind a journey means you make a plan,
you pack a bag.
Oh, cancer, that's more like being dragged through a carwash.
First they hook you on a chain...
[scratching instrument]
and they've got you.
[music]
They drag you in the tunnel.
They spray you down.
They hit you with soap.
[music]
Long strips of cloth go back and forth...
[music]
Big wheel scrubbers spin.
[music]
They check your undercarriage...EH!
[audience laughs]
[music]
They spray your tires.
Vacuum your insides.
Big dryers blast.
[music]
Well who wouldn't have a new hairdo after that?
And you see a light coming at the end.
It's getting closer.
And closer.
And you fall off the chain.
And they usher you back into traffic.
[traffic sounds]
BAND: What's your stage and grade?
MARCY: Stage and grade.
We hear that all the time.
Well, in cancer talk this separates those who have to know from those who don't.
Those who don't will smile at a low number, and say,
"Uh huh, you're fine, you probably don't even have cancer."
And they'll recoil in fear at a high number,
[gasp] "Can I have your guitar?"
[audience laughs]
Well, one major challenge
is deciphering the barrage of numbers and medical terms that come flying at you.
And the categories are Genetic testing,
CBC, Blood Tests, MRI, Ultrasound,
CT Scans, Family History, Onco Test,
Phish Test.
[audience laughs]
Fish Test?
Well, I am a Pisces.
[guitar strum]
Turns out I had an interesting case.
All those numbers and letters along with the cosmos,
decided that I was basically screwed.
Hmmm.
Well, and who knows what that stuff is?
So I did what we all do.
I went right to the internet.
[audience laughs]
And what popped up?
300 links to my death sentence.
[music]
♪ But in the meantime, on my way to dying ♪
♪ I had to think about what I was gonna look like ♪
[guitar strum]
MARCY: To wig or not to wig, that was the question.
Whether 'tis nobler in the mind
to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous baldness,
or to buy hair against a sea of troubles.
When your doctor tells you you might lose your hair,
you begin to think about what a head of hair means to you.
Now my hair has always been thin.
I call it average, mid-western white peoples' hair.
Nothing to get too excited about,
but then having no hair at all, that's a different story.
In 2007 I went with a friend with cancer to pick out a wig
at a small shop in a strip mall in Wheaton, Maryland.
I passed it many times without thinking about it.
It was right between EL Pollo Loco and a check cashing place.
[audience laughs]
But now, I found myself parking in that very same lot,
between the "Crazy Chicken" and the check cashing place.
♪ Looking up at Amy's of Denmark ♪
♪ It's every girl's dream ♪
♪ Whether she wears Spandex pants ♪
♪ Or boots and blue jeans ♪
♪ She may be younger, or older ♪
♪ Just stylin' or transitioning ♪
♪ But Amy's of Denmark ♪
♪ Is every girl's dream ♪
[music]
Oh! It was magical there.
A whole place full of wigs and hats and scarves and toupees!
[music]
And a group of women trying them on and laughing.
[music]
♪ Amy's of Denmark ♪
♪ It's every girl's dream ♪
♪ Whether she wears Spandex pants ♪
♪ Or boots and blue jeans ♪
♪ She may be younger, or older ♪
♪ Just stylin' or transitioning ♪
♪ But Amy's of Denmark ♪
♪ Is every girl's dream ♪
♪ Dream, Dream, Dream ♪
[audience applause]
CATHY AS CINDY: Welcome to Amy's.
I'm Cindy.
MARCY: Hi Cindy, I'm Marcy.
CATHY AS CINDY: How can I help you today?
MARCY: Well, um, I'm in chemo and my doctor said I might lose my hair,
so I'm here just in case I might need a wig.
CATHY AS CINDY: Hmm, who's your doctor?
MARCY: Dr. Coleman.
CATHY AS CINDY: Dr.-- I know Dr. Coleman. What's your treatment plan?
MARCY: It's uh, 12 rounds of chemo with Taxol,
a month of radiation, and a year of Herceptin and after that, I don't know what.
CATHY AS CINDY: And when do you start chemo?
MARCY: Two days ago.
CATHY AS CINDY: Oh, you already started chemo
and they said you might lose your hair?
Well, Honey, you've come to the right place.
I'm so glad you're here.
You stick with me.
And trust me,
from the treatment plan you just told me,
chances are good you will be completely bald in 10 days.
MARCY: 10 days!
Well, that's a long way from you MIGHT lose your hair!
[audience laughs]
Bald in 10 days?
So four days later, my partner Cathy and I gathered a group of friends
and we had a party in the wig shop.
The only rule was that everyone had to try on a wig.
[Hip Hop music]
And when it was my turn to get all wigged out,
I tried on as many crazy, not me hairstyles as possible.
[Hip Hop music]
♪ I walked up to that old wig shop ♪
♪ And found myself prepared to drop ♪
♪ A wad of cash right there on the floor ♪
♪ I went inside all open eyed ♪
♪ And spied all lined up side by side ♪
♪ Wigs and hats and hair pieces galore ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ The temperature's a rising ♪
♪ All wigged out, My friends are mobilizing ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
Play it!
[music]
♪ Oo, Oo, Oo, Oo, Oo ♪
♪ A panic swept my mortal soul ♪
♪ And just like that began to roll ♪
♪ Around my stomach like a lump of coal ♪
♪ It burned and churned and twisted 'round ♪
♪ Till all that's left was just the sound ♪
♪ Of the wind chimes and bell inside the door ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ The temperature's a rising ♪
♪ All wigged out, They'll be some compromising ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ Yeah ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
[audience applause]
The wig I chose was a little bit me,
a little bit Hillary Clinton, it was a little bit too perfect.
It was just the head of hair my mother always wanted for me.
[audience laughs]
CATHY AS CINDY: Do you want me to thin that out for you
so it looks like your real hair honey?
MARCY: Oh no, no. I want all the hair.
CATHY AS CINDY: That's no problem.
Well, a lot our customers, they like to cut their hair real short before it all falls out.
It's a little more comfortable and if we do that,
I can save the long bunches of your hair and sew them onto something called a halo.
It's a headband with your own hair on it.
And then you put a hat on top of that and you look just like you and guess what?
We do it all right here at Amy's of Denmark, easy-peasy.
MARCY: That's great! Let's do that!
She left me half an inch.
I'd worn this hairdo once before,
I was 18 months old.
[audience laughs]
What I learned in the wig shop was invaluable.
One, doctors don't want to tell you how bad it's going to be.
Two, it's always time for a party with good friends.
Three, people who try on a million wigs in the wig shop
and have fun, they're trying to make themselves feel more calm
because they're so damned terrified.
Four, the whole experience helps us to get ready for what's coming.
And five.
MARCY AND BAND: Wig shop ladies are awesome!
[Hip Hop music]
[audience applause]
MARCY: Let me tell you about my history with boobs.
[audience laughs]
Breasts have been a recurring theme in my life.
[deep sigh]
I was a kid who ran around shirtless in the summertime with my buddies.
But, when I was 10 my father decided this was not the way a girl should behave
and I had to wear my shirt to play outside.
When I was 11, I was given my first training bra.
Now at that age, what are they really trying to train?
STAY!
[audience laughs]
My family made a big deal about this training bra.
And we had a party with cupcakes,
a real celebration.
My mom said...
CATHY AS MOM: It's a beautiful step towards womanhood.
It's nothing at all to be ashamed of.
MARCY: So a few days later, feeling no shame,
I took my training bra and put it in my pocket.
And I went outside.
I picked up some rocks, put 'em in my other pockets,
climbed up my favorite tree,
got settled in the crook of some branches,
pulled out that training bra,
put my fingers in the straps and a rock in the stretchy part,
and instead of training my little girls for womanhood,
I was training my marksmanship.
Well, the first one didn't really go as planned,
so I took another rock and put it in the stretchy part.
And I pulled back farther, farther and oh,
hit the steps to the back porch!
Yeah!
But, not satisfied with that tremendous success
I put another rock in the stretchy part and pulled back,
aimed carefully, pulled back farther, farther, farther
and oh, broke a window.
Ooh!
Well, that's about the time my parents came out to find out what was going on.
And my father was mortified.
His face turned red, he stuttered, he stammered,
steam was coming out of his ears and I knew that I was in big, big trouble...
that is until I saw my mother standing behind him...
CATHY AS MOM: [laughing] I told you she wasn't ready.
MARCY: And that's just the beginning of my history with boobs.
My first performing band was called "The Bosom Buddies"
and believe it or not, this all girl, string-band once played at a bar called the "Booby Hatch."
But these days I find myself thinking about breasts all the time.
I can't get away from 'em.
My doctor asked if I wanted reconstruction surgery
and I said, "More surgery? On purpose?
No way."
My two partial mastectomies had left my breasts two different sizes.
But then she explained that radiation would shrink my girl a little bit more.
Oh, sorry honey.
Well, these days I often find myself looking in the mirror
to see if I can see what's different
and I wonder if other people can see it too.
Well, honestly, if they notice they're looking too close.
"Hey, my eyes are up here!"
Well, since I didn't want more surgery,
my radiation oncologist suggested that I find a new way
to make peace with my body the way it was now.
I gave her philosophy some serious thought.
And named my new down-sized boob, "The Little Misses"
[audience laughs]
That sounded appropriate.
I could bond with that.
Me and the "Little Missus", we're goin' out for a walk.
We're bonded girl.
[music]
MARCY: I'm not a drinker
and I never really did drugs, but once I started chemo...
[music]
♪ No need for a fancy drink ♪
♪ A glass's tink, flirtatious wink ♪
♪ I feel a little tipsy all the time ♪
♪ I don't need pharmaceuticals or, beautiful old musicals ♪
♪ I feel a little tipsy all the time ♪
♪ Like elevations, stations ♪
♪ Make the head feel light ♪
♪ Libations, sensations ♪
♪ Keep me light both day and night ♪
♪ No need for expensive wine ♪
♪ From vintage vine, or a jug of shine ♪
♪ I feel a little tipsy all the time ♪
[music]
♪ Some say I see the world through rose colored glasses ♪
♪ Well that may be true, but sipping brew ♪
♪ Can prove crass for lads and lasses ♪
♪ Love's what makes this world complete ♪
♪ Pretty neat, can't be beat ♪
♪ I feel a little tipsy ♪
♪ Feel a little tipsy ♪
♪ I feel a little tipsy all the time ♪
[audience applause]
CATHY: How ya doin'?
MARCY: I'm ok.
CATHY: You want something to drink?
MARCY: Oh, no, thank you.
CATHY: Do you want some chocolate?
MARCY: Mmm. Yes.
CATHY: Do you want to watch a movie?
MARCY: Yea, that'd be good.
Honey, I'm so sorry.
CATHY: What for?
MARCY: I screwed up our lives.
CATHY: You're right.
You completely screwed up our lives. Look at us.
You're lying back, you got your feet up,
you're having a cocktail, I'm the designated driver.
This is a mess.
But, we're married and your stuck with me.
[giggle]
MARCY: No seriously, I don't know when or if I'll ever play music again.
And if this neuropathy gets much worse it could be a long time.
Do you want to go do some shows without me?
CATHY: Uh, definitely not.
Then who would take care of you?
Here's what we're gonna do.
We're gonna watch movies together.
I'm gonna watch you sleep.
MARCY: Oh.
CATHY: I'm going to make you homemade organic soups in the Vitamix.
I'm gonna go to every chemo.
I'm gonna go to every doctor's appointment.
I'm going to keep the idiots and the assholes away from you.
And we're gonna have a party when you finish chemo,
a party when you finish radiation
and we're gonna get through this one day at a time together.
You got it?
MARCY: Got it.
CATHY: Now, let me kiss your bald spot.
Oh, so many to choose from.
[kissing]
So, what movie do you wanna sleep through?
MARCY: Eh, you'd better pick.
CATHY TO AUDIENCE I went to every appointment.
I made sure all of our questions were answered.
I let the doctors know that our meeting was over
when I said it was over and not before.
Like, when the doctor was leaving and I said, "Hey, please take a look at Marcy's feet.
"They are as big as watermelons, incredibly painful,
and she can only wear size 14 UGGS."
My ability to do this made me realize
how incredibly important it is to have an advocate with you
when you are navigating a life threatening illness.
And that some people go through this alone.
CATHY: [whispering] Marcy?
Psst. Marcy.
The Benadryl is working.
I get to watch her sleep again.
[lightly strumming guitar]
♪ Go tell Aunt Rhody ♪
[lightly strumming guitar]
♪ Go tell Aunt...Rhody ♪
♪ Go tell aunt Rhody ♪
♪ The...old grey goose is dead ♪
CATHY AS MOM: Marcy.
MARCY: What Mom?
CATHY AS MOM: Learn a different song!
[audience laughs]
MARCY: Ok, I know.
I'll write a song.
I'll write a song about Jesus.
[audience laughs]
[music]
♪ Jesus is my backseat driver ♪
♪ Jesus tells me where to go ♪
♪ Where to go, where to go ♪
♪ When the gasoline is cheapest ♪
♪ My friend Jesus tells me so ♪
[audience applause]
CATHY AS MOM: Oh, good God!
[electric strumming]
[rock electric strumming]
MARCY: One, two, a one, two, three, four.
[rock music]
♪ Fu, Fu, Fu, Fu, my parents are unfair ♪
♪ Fu, Fu, Fu, Fu, they will not let me swear ♪
♪ Fu, Fu, Fu, they make me take out stinky trash ♪
♪ Fu, Fu, Fu, and they don't trust me with cash ♪
[music]
CATHY AS MOM: Marcy Marie Marxer!
MARCY: What?
CATHY AS MOM: Knock it off down there!
I can still hear you!
[audience laughs]
[music]
♪ I love the trees ♪
♪ I love the butterflies ♪
♪ Love is the answer ♪
♪ What is the question? ♪
[audience laughs]
CATHY AS MOM: That's so pretty.
That's my kid.
[audience laughs]
CATHY: How ya doin'?
You missed the whole movie.
MARCY: I had a movie of my own.
CATHY: Uh, well you can tell me about it on the way home.
I'm gonna go get the car.
MARCY: You know the old saying,
"There's no such thing as a dumb question"?
It turns out there is.
When you have cancer, everyone has an opinion
and there is no way to be prepared for the questions they'll ask you like,
"What are your chances?"
Poof. This one came with a punch in the arm.
Not a great idea for someone who just had a biopsy.
CATHY: Are you gonna have reconstruction surgery?
'Cause my friend had reconstruction surgery.
It was horribly painful. They take these spacers.
They put 'em where your breasts used to be and they stretch
and they stretch and they stretch and they stretch.
MARCY: Oh, No, no, no, no, no.
And that one was from a licensed psychotherapist.
[audience laughs]
STACY: I had a friend with that.
Oh, she died.
[audience laughs]
JANET: Don't do chemo, it's rat poisoning.
MARCY: Are you gonna use Western Medicine?
STACY: You know, um, you can cure yourself with marijuana.
And if it don't work, you ain't gonna care.
[audience laughs]
JANET: That's for sure.
You know why you got cancer, don't you?
BAND ALL TOGETHER: STRESS!
Stress causes cancer.
MARCY: Well, they got that one totally backward.
Cancer causes stress.
CATHY: Don't do chemo.
You can cure yourself with your mind.
[chuckling]
MARCY: My mind? [chuckling]
[strums guitar]
♪ A lot of us have good ideas ♪
♪ The simple and profound ♪
♪ Here's a word of caution, before spreading them around ♪
♪ Unsolicited advice ♪
♪ Some folks say it isn't nice ♪
♪ So I better think twice ♪
♪ No unsolicited advice ♪
♪ Life can use a little spice ♪
♪ Like adding flavor to life's rice ♪
♪ But I'm just rolling the dice ♪
♪ With unsolicited advice ♪
♪ Discuss, inquire, or truth unmask ♪
♪ But don't go answering questions ♪
♪ That no one's ever asked ♪
♪ Unsolicited advice ♪
♪ I know that I would pay a price ♪
♪ Let me be concise ♪
♪ No unsolicited advice ♪
[music]
♪ Discuss, inquire, or truth unmask ♪
♪ But don't go answering questions ♪
♪ That no one's ever asked ♪
♪ Unsolicited advice ♪
♪ I know that I would pay a price ♪
♪ So, let me be concise ♪
No!
[guitar strum] Don't say it.
[guitar strum] I know you want to.
♪ No unsolicited advice ♪
[music]
[audience applause]
MARCY: But, sometimes people get it just right.
The night I got my diagnosis, I had a concert to perform.
I was backstage in the dressing room getting ready to go on,
but I was anything but ready.
My dear friend Jim opened the door to the dressing room,
stepped in, saw my tears
and slowly backed back out of the room.
A few seconds later he came back in.
He said, "You ok, buddy?"
I was obviously not ok.
I told him what happened and he said,
"Cancer is not a death sentence.
Just take it one step at a time and get it done.
If they offer you chemo, take it.
It's better to just do it and get it over with.
And that way, if it ever comes back you'll have no regrets."
Well, he gave me a big, gentle bear hug
and as I was leaving the dressing room he said,
"Now buddy, go out there and knock 'em dead."
Interesting choice of words.
[music]
MARCY: Hi everybody, I have cancer, can you tell?
Yes, the hospital gave us these handy, inconspicuous, "My Chemo" bags
to wear around the hospital just so everyone knew what we were there for.
What was in the bag?
Oh, let's see here.
A word search puzzle book
in large print.
Oh, lemon drops.
Um, a pamphlet with pictures of happy people with cancer...
[audience laughs]
...a scratchy, polyester headcap...
Ummmm...
Ah.
Last, but not least, a lint roller.
Now at first glance it may seem weird because nobody tells you what it's for.
But when your hair starts falling out and gets on your clothes, you understand.
Well, I just started lint rolling my head.
[audience laughs]
Cancer patients have so much in common.
It's really almost like having new family members that you've never met.
We all start to look alike right away.
At first we all look like this.
But as your hair, eyebrows and eyelashes fall out
and you look a little puffy from the steroids
that fool your body into accepting the chemicals,
well, there's a look to that.
We all look related, regardless of our skin color or background.
And we are related.
We understand each other.
We know each other's hopes and dreams
and we know each other's pain.
We know how to look each other in the eye and say...
MARCY AND CATHY: Nice hat!
MARCY: A one- two- three- four.
[music]
♪ Oh, where'd you get that hat? ♪
♪ Where did you get that hat? ♪
♪ You're looking mighty marvelous ♪
♪ So great that we must chat ♪
♪ I know you're in a hurry ♪
♪ You probably must scat ♪
♪ But before you go please tell me ♪
♪ Where did you get that hat? ♪
[music]
♪ Oh, where'd you get that turban? ♪
♪ Where did you get that turban? ♪
♪ It's very cosmopolitan, and definitely urban ♪
♪ Have yourself a gathering ♪
♪ You certainly are deservin' ♪
♪ I hope that you go home tonight ♪
♪ And toast yourself with bourbon ♪
♪ On the banjo ♪
[music]
♪ Oh, where'd you get that sleep cap? ♪
♪ Where did you get that sleep cap? ♪
♪ It covers up your noggin ♪
♪ And it doesn't leave a deep gap ♪
♪ When you take a lay down ♪
♪ To catch a little catnap ♪
♪ Where'd you get that sleep cap? ♪
♪ Where did you get that sleep cap? ♪
Yeah!
[music]
♪ Oh, where'd you get that hat? ♪
♪ Where did you get that hat? ♪
♪ You're looking mighty marvelous ♪
♪ So great that we must chat ♪
♪ I know you're in a hurry ♪
♪ You probably must scat ♪
♪ But before you go please tell me ♪
♪ Where did you get that hat? ♪
[music]
[audience applauds]
MARCY: Before I started chemo, I was told that it might damage my nerves.
That I might have trouble using my hands and fingers.
Crap.
Well two weeks after starting chemo,
neuropathy had begun creeping into my fingers
and touching the strings of an instrument was extremely painful.
On my next hospital visit,
I was asked to fill out a questionnaire.
A neuropathy questionnaire.
OK.
Check yes or no.
Can you hold a pen?
[audience laughs]
Yes.
Can you button a shirt?
Hmm, that's a no.
Let's see.
Can you walk up and down stairs unaided?
Well yes, if I'm holding onto Cathy.
So I guess that's a no.
Can you operate a zipper?
No, that's why I'm wearing sweatpants.
Do you feel like a woman?
What are my options?
Can you use a TV remote?
Yes.
Does Neuropathy interfere with your ability to do your job?
[sighs]
[deep sigh]
[quiet strumming]
[frustrated groan]
[forceful blowing]
[audience applause]
[sighs]
Can you pick up a quarter?
[audience laughs]
No, but I can pick up a guitar pick.
[audience cheers and applause]
CATHY: I saw Marcy's first hair growth
in the early morning light.
MARCY: And I saw those eyes that had continuously looked at me
like I was the most beautiful thing in the world.
CATHY: And one by one the hairs kept on coming.
She was some place between a Chia Pet and a small patch of new grass.
MARCY: And as my hair grew,
neuropathy subsided little by little.
CATHY: And as that happened...
MARCY: Thank you.
CATHY: ...she was gradually able
to touch the strings of an instrument without pain.
And eventually strum a little bit.
And then play a whole song.
MARCY: And with each quarter inch of hair growth,
I could do a little bit more.
CATHY: And a little bit more.
MARCY: And a little bit more.
[music]
♪ Oh from day to day it's so hard for me to say ♪
♪ If the road that I'm on now will lead me right ♪
♪ Ah, but year to year it becomes a bit more clear ♪
♪ Seems like I am getting closer to the light ♪
♪ And when my burden's great ♪
♪ So that I bend under the weight ♪
♪ And it seems like I'm surrounded by the night ♪
♪ Oh well I don't mind traveling ♪
♪ Along this darkened road ♪
♪ If I'm traveling closer to the light ♪
[music]
♪ Every day I start with this compass in my heart ♪
♪ And it helps to keep the road within my sights ♪
♪ And as I go forth looking for magnetic north ♪
♪ Seems like I am getting closer to the light ♪
♪ And when my burden's great ♪
♪ So that I bend under the weight ♪
♪ And it seems like I'm surrounded by the night ♪
♪ Oh well I don't mind traveling ♪
♪ Along this darkened road ♪
♪ If I'm traveling closer to the light ♪
♪ And when my burden's great ♪
♪ So that I bend under the weight ♪
♪ And it seems like I'm surrounded by the night ♪
♪ Oh well I don't mind traveling ♪
♪ Along this darkened road ♪
♪ If I'm traveling closer to the light ♪
[audience applause]
MARCY: People sometimes tell me that I'm really brave
and they ask how a patient can keep going back over and over.
Well anyone with cancer will tell you that we do what we have to do
and when it's over, we don't feel totally safe.
We're always looking over our shoulder.
I can tell you that the thing that kept me going was the love of my partner.
Every day she looked at me with love in her eyes.
I never saw fear.
I never saw doubt.
I only saw confidence.
CATHY: I didn't really know where this would lead.
I only know that it was very, very difficult to watch someone I love suffer so much.
I was not 100% sure that Marcy would ever play music again.
But I was and I still am 100% sure that whatever happens,
we will go through this life together.
MARCY: Cathy gave me the strength when I felt my absolute lowest
to get up one more time and take one more step.
CATHY: Well, you know, I am used to having the last word.
And Marcy's motto throughout illness has stuck with us.
CATHY AND MARCY: Lower your expectations and increase your optimism.
MARCY: And now, with forty years together...
CATHY AND MARCY: we're stronger than ever.
♪ It takes two to tango ♪
♪ Two for a pair ♪
♪ Two to make twins ♪
♪ Two rocking chairs ♪
♪ Two hearts to beat to-- ♪
♪ One single drum ♪
♪ Two voices in unison to make a song hum ♪
♪ You complete my-- ♪
♪ Sentence ♪
♪ You finish my-- ♪
♪ Meal ♪
♪ You steal my ice cream, (You weren't finishing it) ♪
♪ That's part of the deal ♪
♪ You have to slow down for me ♪
♪ Can't you speed up? ♪
♪ No, not really ♪
♪ We're two peas in a pod, just making life up ♪
♪ You're a preacher's daughter ♪
♪ Yes, I'm a Shiksa and you're a Jew ♪
♪ We have a mixed marriage ♪
♪ That's nothing new ♪
♪ Well the marriage part is kind of new ♪
♪ You know more melody ♪
♪ You know more songs ♪
♪ When we add harmony, ya know we can't go wrong ♪
♪ Marcy Marxer, swing it! ♪
[music]
♪ You're so damn positive ♪
♪ You're so damn strong, how do you do it? ♪
♪ We're so different that's why we get along ♪
♪ You went to charm school ♪
♪ Honey, you skipped that class ♪
♪ Together we've got each other's ♪
♪ ...Internet passwords ♪
♪ But somehow we fit like two hands in one glove ♪
♪ From the moment we kissed it was clear we're in love ♪
♪ Through laughter and smiles, sickness and more ♪
♪ We had no idea what was in store ♪
Stacy McMichael.
[solo on bass]
And Janet Cramer.
[solo on drums]
♪ You complete my-- ♪
♪ Sentence ♪
♪ You finish my-- ♪
♪ Meal ♪
♪ You eat my ice cream, (Oh, yeah) ♪
♪ That's part of the deal ♪
♪ I have to slow down for you ♪
♪ I can't speed up? ♪
♪ We're two peas in a pod, just making life up ♪
♪ Just making, two peas in a pod ♪
♪ Just making life ♪
[music]
♪ Up ♪
[music]
[audience applause]
♪ A panic swept my mortal soul ♪
♪ And just like that began to roll ♪
♪ Around my stomach like a lump of coal ♪
♪ It burned and churned and twisted 'round ♪
♪ Till all that's left was just the sound ♪
♪ Of the wind chimes and bell inside the door ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ The temperature's a rising ♪
♪ All wigged out, Friends are mobilizing ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ Yea ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
Break it down now.
[music]
♪ No precious time to contemplate ♪
♪ No way to wait and meditate ♪
♪ Or otherwise negate the plan in place ♪
♪ That chair was empty as it sat ♪
♪ So it and I got at a chat ♪
♪ For in its habitat begat my fate ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ Whoa -oo -oo ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ They'll be some compromising ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ Get a wig, Get a wig ♪
♪ All wigged out ♪
♪ You steal my ice cream ♪
♪ Yea ♪
♪ That's part of the deal ♪
♪ I have to slow down for me ♪
♪ We get to do it again ♪
CATHY: Really? You go first?
MARCY: I go first. Yea.
CATHY: Really?
MARCY: Well, you like to have the last word.
CATHY: OK, fine.
♪ You complete my ♪
MARCY: You gotta sing the line.
Dang it!
I did that all by myself.
CATHY: OK, let's go.
MARCY: I had no help making that mistake.
Okay.
CATHY AND MARCY: Lower your expectations and increase your optimism.
MARCY: And now, with forty years together...
CATHY AND MARCY: We're stronger than ever.
[guitar strum]
CATHY: Oh, and then I'm supposed to sing.
MARCY: This is a good time for a song. Don't you just feel it coming?
[audience applause]
Come up here, don't back up.
Come up with me.
♪ It takes two to tango ♪
♪ Two for a pair ♪
♪ Two to make twins ♪
♪ Two rocking chairs ♪
♪ One more time, so I play the right chord ♪
And now, with 41 years together--
[audience laughter and applause]
I'll give her a minute. I'll give her a minute.
We're aging fast right here in front of your eyes
♪ Get it ♪