To Mike

I just got in touch with a very old friend from high school. I've been wondering about him for years, and to find him has been such a joy. The power of nostalgia explains so much. Consider the revival of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, The Transformers, and Star Wars. Multiply that by ten to the tenth power, and you can quantify how happy I am to have heard from Mike.

Mike helped get me my first job under Russ and Don, and he never hesitated to tell me that I was being an asshole when I was being one. There's really nothing like an old friend to erase the hard times of the past and, in doing so, wipe a clean slate for the future. Mike's getting married, and I hope for him the best that marriage can bring.

Look at me being all sappy, and I'm not even mildly (or extremely) intoxicated. I'm just downright happy.

It reminds me of a lesson that I once taught to some young people. I'd asked them, "What song defines you personality and hopes." Many answered with nonsense, like the White Stripes's "We Are Gonna Be Friends" (a fine song, but not a good one for my question):

Fall is here, hear the yell
back to school, ring the bell
Brand new shoes, walking blues
climb the fence, book and pens
I can tell that we are gonna be friends

Walk with me, suzy lee
through the park, by the tree
We will rest upon the ground
and look at all the bugs we've found
then safely walk to school
without a sound

Well here we are, no one else
we walked to school all by ourselves
there's dirt on our uniforms
from chasing all the ants and worms
we clean up and now it's time to learn

Numbers, letters, learn to spell
nouns, and books, and show and tell
at playtime we will throw the ball
back to class, through the hall
teacher marks our height against the wall

And we don't notice any time pass
we don't notice anything
we sit side by side in every class
teacher thinks that i sound funny
but she likes the way you sing

Tonight I'll dream while i'm in bed
when sill thoughts go through my head
about the bugs and alphabet
and when I wake tomorrow I'll bet
that you and I will walk together again
cause I can tell that we
are going to be friends


Others were a bit more on target with things like John Lennon's "Imagine."

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one

So I told them that when they were older, a song by Simon and Garfunkel would be more apropos. The song, "Old Friends/Bookends" goes as follows. Those of you more than thirty years of age will know what I'm talking about.

Old friends,
Old friends
Sat on their park bench
Like bookends.
A newspaper blown though the grass
Falls on the round toes
Of the high shoes
Of the old friends.

Old friends,
Winter companions,
The old men
Lost in their overcoats,
Waiting for the sunset.
The sounds of the city,
Sifting through trees,
Settle like dust
On the shoulders
Of the old friends.

Can you imagine us
Years from today,
Sharing a park bench quietly?
How terribly strange
To be seventy.
Old friends,
Memory brushes the same years
Silently sharing the same fears

Time it was,
And what a time it was
It was
A time of innocence.
A time of confidences.
Long ago, it must be.
I have a photograph.
Preserve your memories;
They're all that's left you.

Thanks, Mike, for getting back in touch. If we can share a park bench when we are seventy, I will be more than delighted.

With youth comes vigor. With age comes wisdom. With politicians, registered Republicans, and registered Democrats comes neither. Remember that in November. There, I've said it. Vote Libertarian or vote not at all. Don't worry. Your freedom and the achievements of the ages are all that are at stake.