BROWN SUGAR COOKIE RECIPE

“When you're weary; feeling small, when tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all… Like a bridge over troubled water”
Bridge Over Troubled Water: Simon And Garfunkel, Bridge Over Troubled Water

I don’t know how to describe the effect that this song has on me but I will attempt. I always seem to get this over whelming feeling of sadness and sentiment. I feel overjoyed and lifted and yet I feel the desire to curl up in a ball on the floor. There are so many emotional highs and lows- build ups and fall offs in this song, that every time that I hear it I feel like I have gone on a huge roller coaster ride… and I love it.

My memory with this song is that I had been in love with this song because of the above mentioned emotions that I felt. One day I was in a Wendy’s having lunch with my father, talking about future plans and what I wanted, etc. I never really liked to confess my desire and my love for music with my family for two reasons: one, they never understood and two they never supported my dreams. I’ll take it a step further- they crushed them in the name of safety and stability.

I had a rare moment where I actually started to open up about how music meant so much to me and I was trying to describe how and why. When this song came on- the emotions just sparked something in me and my eyes started to tear up. My father was taken back a bit… and then proceeded to talk about all of the great companies I could work for to make a stable and secure cookie cutter life. Thought there was a cheesy movie moment coming where my father realized things and supported me every day since?? LOL… this isn’t quite Hollywood.

A few years later my father had a discussion with me about how I never open up to the family and how I am like a closed door. My response was this story I described. When I asked him why I would open up if every time I did- I was shut down or dismissed. He had nothing to say…

*** Artist Notes ***
This is the bridge linking Arlington Virginia with Washington D.C., so I thought it was poetic that this was the Bridge Over Troubled Waters!

Lyrics:
When you're weary; feeling small,
When tears are in your eyes, I will dry them all;
I'm on your side oh when times get rough
And friends just can't be found.
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down.
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down.

When you're down and out;
when you're on the street;
when evening falls so hard
I will comfort you.
I'll take your part
oh when darkness comes.
And pain is all around.
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will lay me down

Sail on silvergirl;
sail on by.
Your time has come to shine.
All your dreams are on their way.
See how they shine.
Oh if you need a friend
I'm sailing right behind.
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind
Like a bridge over troubled water
I will ease your mind.

"Sing, sing a song.
Sing out loud, sing out strong."
-From "Sing" by Joe Raposo

Not surprisingly, music has always been an important part of Sesame Street. Shown here is the original handwritten sheet music for the Sesame Street theme, officially known as "Sesame Street Theme," but often referred to as "Sunny Days" due to its famous opening lyric. Composed by Joe Raposo with lyrics by Raposo, Bruce Hart, and Jon Stone, Stone considered the song to be "a musical masterpiece and a lyrical embarrassment"- despite this, "Can you tell me how to get to Sesame Street?" has become one of the most famous musical questions of our time.

As the two original composers of the show, Raposo and Jeff Moss had a friendly rivalry: Raposo would frequently write sarcastic remarks on Moss's sheet music, and when Raposo had one more song than Moss on a Sesame Street LP, Moss had his credit placed in a box so it would stand out more. Combined, the two of them wrote many great songs that immediately come to mind when one thinks of Sesame Street, with Moss responsible for such songs as "I Love Trash," "I Don't Want To Live On The Moon," "The People in Your Neighborhood," and the Top 40 hit "Rubber Duckie," with Raposo contributing "Bein' Green," "C is for Cookie," "Sing," and many others.

Photo and Caption by Ryan W. Mead

Sesame Street: A Celebration of 40 Years of Life on the Street
Brooklyn Public Library, Grand Army Plaza, Brooklyn, New York 11238
November 14, 2009-February 21, 2010
Taken November 14, 2009

Sesame Street characters and elements ©Sesame Workshop
"Sesame Street Theme" by Joe Raposo, Bruce Hart, and Jeff Moss ©1970 Sesame Street, Inc. and Stage Harbor Publishing, Inc. (ASCAP)
"Sing" by Joe Raposo ©1970 Jonico Music, Inc. (BMI)