I’m sitting next to Mae, my niece, who’s doing school work this Monday morning. While my sister checks her work, Mae sings “Tomorrow” from the movie / play Annie under her breath. Mae’s older sister, Lucy, and their friends are putting on a shortened performance of the movie. Mae is pumped to play an orphan. Why i’m telling you this today is because the song, “Tomorrow” has followed me around for most of my life. I wonder if this is a common experience for redheads with curly hair. I cut my hair really short in my late twenties and kept it that length for almost a decade. When I lived in New York, strangers would sing this song at me. This was a regular occurrence. If you ask me if I’m sick of this reference, my answer is always no. Do I think it’s strange that little orphan Annie’s story has stuck with so many people (especially men) of varying ages and races? I do.

But, it always makes me smile. To me, there’s something very sweet about the fact that people are willing to sing that song out loud or greet me as Annie. And being told that tomorrow is a new day (the sun will metaphorically come out) will always be a good reminder to not get bogged down by the stresses of the day. Annie was also a spirited, loyal, curious, funny little girl who carried hope with her, despite her dire circumstances. If I can remind people of her, in any way, I consider it a huge compliment. And now, my nieces are walking around their house singing the all-to-familiar tune and i’m once again reminded to focus on hope, one day at a time.