Inspiring Women Winter 2017

me time to heed the curvy things I missed
when my world was smaller: braided wreaths
made of naked vines, or slightly scary
shadows on windy days. I cherish a
landscaped line of tulips snaking towards a
the straight-line way - would forever elude
me. I discovered I could have a fulfilling
career as long as I took my time,
bypassed clogged intersections, and took a
roundabout, more scenic route - one
including suspension bridges, tree swings, and
Ferris wheels.
Sometimes the Ferris wheel gets stuck, but at
least while I’m waiting for the repair gal to
show up, I can lean back and take in the
view there.
lake, the nape of a woman’s neck, the swell
of her breast where it meets a rib cage; an
eight-year-old’s handmade Valentine, the
scalloped lace on my grandmother’s old
piano shawl.
These shapes are not European or American
or anything else. They are mine. They are
yours. They are human. They look like home.
My body plays along with the shape of things.
Less angular than I used to be, curvy and
yielding, I listen to music that bends in the
middle, observe the soft colors of an early
summer twilight, taste grains of salt in the
silvery-blue ocean air. The world is round and
so am I. In the plush shelter of a domed
canopy I’ve built for myself, I rest. Visions of
my rangy youth run circles around me.
Circles. Curves. Loops. They define my life.
They have led me far away. They will also
lead me home. Eventually. Zu Hause. Home.
At last.
A career in the arts can be curvy. As a
young artist I tried to travel efficiently
from Point A to Point B. I craved logic in
my life, but life kept throwing me, yes,
curveballs. Confused, I curled into
myself and rolled away from the pitch. I
ran a good race, but usually, when
approaching the finish line, I tripped
over my Jimmy Choos and ended up
with scraped knees and a brush-burned
heart. I ignored my beautiful toe
cleavage and, in my haste, snubbed
more than a few perfectly round, splash
-worthy puddles. It took a decade or
so, but I realized the logical way to live -
Robin Meloy Goldsby (AIWC Cologne) is the author of Piano Girl; Rhythm, Waltz of
the Asparagus People, and Manhattan Road Trip. Goldsby’s career as a pianist
has taken her from roadside dives to posh New York City venues and exclusive
resorts, and on to the European castles and concert stages where she now
performs. Robin has seven solo piano recordings to her name and has appeared
in the USA on National Public Radio’s All Things Considered and Piano Jazz with
Marian McPartland. Robin is a Steinway Artist. She lives in Cologne, Germany, with
her husband and two adult children.
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