things that keep me sane

army days

As much as I hate to say this, the army has been a pretty interesting journey. Looking back I’ve had many, many awesome experiences wearing green. I’ve had the priviledge of driving a bloody tank around. I’ve had liberal chances of expanding in excess of fifteen different weapon systems. I’ve been stretched beyond breaking point physically, mentally, emotionally. I’m quite sure that I am now stronger than how I was before.

But quite frankly, I’m pretty sick and tired of the system here. IT’S FUCKING BULLSHIT.

dear john lennon

Dear John,

Happy birthday. Again, Let It Be sails steady from the speakers. Off the azure walls.

I remember vivid, Hey Jude at a karaoke when I was four. Maybe five. I hadn’t the slightest clue what it was about. It made me feel sad. Happy. Calm. I never forgot the song. And when a kid is carried away by a song written 25 years before, you know there’s magic in it somewhere.

About a decade on, Hey Jude again made its presence felt. By this time, I knew what the song meant. And it marked a point in my life that I can’t imagine having any other way. Like the song represented, it marked innocence. Tenderness. Direction. Perseverance. Love. Again, it was pure magic.

Along with Hey Jude, other songs marked stages in my life. Yesterday. Imagine. All You Need Is Love. Here, There And Everywhere. Strawberry Fields Forever. Girl. And, of course, Let It Be.

You were always there.

Though they weren’t all written by you, Paul, George nor Ringo would never have penned any of them if not for the birth of The Silver Beetles. I hate the fact that I never had the chance to see you or The Beatles perform. I hate the fact that the World died a little when you left with your brilliance. And I hate Yoko. But I also respect her. She made you happy. She fueled you.

You left the World with huge shoes to fill. No talent today could ever fill them. If you had half a chance to listen to the crap they play on the radio today, you’d flip in your grave. If you had half a glance at what the World is today, you’d thank Mark Chapman for the bullet. Julian sang it best, “Saltwater wells in my eyes”. Along with the legacy you left behind was an era that will never again surface.

You represent hope, peace, love and wonder. And your genius will live forever.