2007

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Goosebumps

It strikes without warning. That funny, little tingling sensation that suddenly overtakes our senses and surrounds our being with an instantaneous feeling that almost resembles a chill. Often, it can be caused by a very pleasant experience, but is also associated with a thrill of some kind, or a momentary fright. Its that funny little surge of emotion, that small wave of nervous stimulation that causes us to look down at our arms to see tiny little dots of raised skin we have come to know affectionately as GOOSEBUMPS.

 Now I am sure that there are valid medical reasons, why these occur, and the neurologists can usually provide a rational explanation for the reasons that goosebumps exist. However, I am mystified why these tiny things come on so suddenly. The tingling sensation appears to be triggered by the brain reacting to some kind of past or present thrilling recollection or sudden burst of emotion.

 All of us have experienced spine tingling stories or hair raising adventures throughout our lives, There have also been times I am sure where we narrowly escaped a calamity or tragedy and had that sudden rush of relief expressed in the “W” words  “Wow” or “whew”. That narrow miss that was as good as a mile is a good example. Other short expressions of relief exclaimed starting with those other consonants, perhaps would suffice better, but will not be mentioned here.

 To a music lover, the goosebumps come easily. They can come suddenly, while listening to a particular passage of a familiar tune. Many of the older generation feel a rush upon hearing a stirring rendition of the 1812 Overture while it is blasting forth with bells ringing and cannons firing. Perhaps when a large group gathers to sing the Messiah each holiday, the goosebumps suddenly jump up. Christmas carols somehow are just background department store and elevator music, but when sung by a massed choir, they are magnificently elevated and often bring on the same exhilaration. Many simply get emotional it while hearing The Star Spangled Banner at sporting events. Recent events which have brought upon new renditions of “God Bless America’ to our country often cause tear filled emotions that include massive amounts of these little occurrences. The tragedy at the World Trade Center, brought sadness and chaos to a large segment of our population, but the memorial services and the swelling of national unity and patriotism that evolved probably has produced the largest number of Goosebumps in history.

 A fairly recent poignant emotional event in memory is where huge numbers of football fans were afflicted with goosebumps and tears that were brought forth on a football field at Texas A&M University after the Aggie bonfire tragedy. The rival Longhorn Band from the University of Texas took the field and slowly and quietly raised their horns to a mournful but beautifully arranged rendition of Amazing Grace in memory of those students who perished. A silence that had never been heard before in that normally boisterous stadium was deafening, the swelling of emotion that happened there between the opposing factions will never be forgotten. It is doubted that there was a dry eye in the house, or anywhere else where the scene was viewed on TV. Although the spirited rivalry goes on, there probably was never any other event in the history of the two schools, that helped to bond the two groups together than that which happened on a Thanksgiving weekend in 1999, when goosebumps reigned supreme.

 We never know when those tiny bumps will appear. . But you can be sure that they will happen, and it will always be a mystery why. They can arrive suddenly, and before you know it, that little tingle and rush of emotion will appear out of nowhere. Most of the time, goosebumps are good. They are bound to come again and again unexpectedly to all of us in the future, and in fact, As the old time movie actress Betty Davis might have put it if she was still alive today  “Fasten your seatbelts.it’s gonna be a Goosebumpy Ride”.

 Jim Richards

2001

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