Sweet Dreams and Flying Machines in Pieces on the Ground

Long ago a young man sits and plays his waiting game
But things are not the same it seems as in such tender dreams
Slowly passing sailing ships and Sunday afternoon
Like people on the moon I see are things not meant to be...

September 13, 2003, I left a cousin's wedding reception very early.  Before I arrived, I kept missing the roads that would take me to the country club where the reception took place, although the place is not far from where I live and I have been there before. 

It was as if fate was telling me not to go.  It was a lousy day to begin with and I was quite grumpy.  I became even grumpier when I found that my sister, a few strangers, and I were to be seated in a small room adjacent to the banquet hall.  

We grew up with the groom.  Not only was he a cousin but more like a brother to me.  Why were my sister and I pushed aside, made invisible?  When I left I said no goodbyes.  I am sure nobody missed me.

  Several hundreds of miles away, another  cousin, Brian,  jumped to his death off the balcony of his apartment.

A few weeks before he died, he would ask his parents why the world was so violent.  Why did people have to hurt each other.  He didn't want to live in this world anymore. He wanted out.

His  parents were stricken by Brian's quick turn into depression.  They could only suggest that he talk to someone. 

Brian was resolute.  He would not be talking to anyone.

To love is just a word I've heard when things are being said
Stories my poor head has told me cannot stand the cold
And in between what might have been and what has come to pass
A misbegotten guess alas and bits of broken glass...

James Taylor was also suicidal.  In his youth and early adult years, he had been in and out of mental hospitals.  But Taylor found an outlet for his anger and misery.  If Brian had an outlet, he lost it.

He was just a month younger than me.    We were never close.  The last  times I saw him were in 1997 at my brother's wedding, 1996 at our grandmother's funeral.  Still I have fond memories, although few,  of Brian from childhood on. 

And one day, a month after his death, my sister and I went to the movies.  The young man behind the ticket counter looked exactly like Brian did in his early adult years -  in face, hair, eyes, the soft-spoken voice,  the eagerness to be helpful, tireless in offering information. 

 I didn't want to stop looking at this young man.  I didn't want to stop hearing his voice.  So I asked many questions about several movies I didn't even care about.    Finally, I couldn't ask anymore questions, and I had to get to my seat where my sister was waiting...still, as I walked away, I couldn't stop turning to look at this stranger behind the counter.

That happens a lot.  You lose someone and suddenly there is something in  others that remind you of that person.

Kind of like the way James Taylor bends his head down a lot while he talks to the audience.  Brian would bend his head down, also, while in conversation.

The human skeleton is associated with the grave, tombstones, poison, and not just death, but ugly, gruesome death.  Poor skeleton!!!

But our blood is made in the bones.  10 to 15 million new blood cells per second.  At the same time, the same number - used cells - is struck down by the marrow and spleen.  A little more than 50% of our bones are in our hands, feet, and head. 

Our strongest, hardest bones are the jaw,  tooth enamel and the femur.  The femur is stronger than concrete.

The biggest most insidious detriment to our bones?

CocaCola and Pepsi!

So what a great tribute to the human skeleton done in this video.  All the while, the lyrics  play around with the question: why are we here? 

Why are we here? Because we're here, ROLL THE BONES!

Donny Hathaway, as a young boy, sang in his church choir.  My cousin Brian never attended church or the mosque, although his father was born a Muslim. 

Donny had a wife and two children.  Brian was never married and had no children.  Donny was born poor.  Brian was born into middle class to wealth and had a steady, well-paying job at the time of his death.

Donny had demons probably due to a failing brain chemistry, but maybe he was beginning to feel isolated and overwhelmed spiritually, as well.  Maybe both.

This song [ in the last video below ]  has been done by so many artists, but no one can come close to the magic of Donny.

  We can easily say there is no God because of suicides and other tragedies.   And why do people like Brian and Donny choose to leave, while those like the ship breakers in Wadosy's post choose to stay, hardly a cozy life, theirs.

I  see God in the calm temperment of Brian.  I see God in the singing talents of Donny.  I see God in the perseverance and strength of the ship breakers. 

 There is no waste.  Whatever the circumstances for which we leave this world, we leave having  made a difference. 

 ------------------------------------------------------------

The title for the post come from the lyrics of

Fire And Rain

James Taylor

--------------------------------------------------------------

Hat Tip to Grim Reaper for jogging my memory for the song Roll The Bones

THANK YOU!

Submitted by Rhiannon on Thu, 2008-12-25 18:15

• Rhiannon's blog
• Login or register to post comments
• 50 reads
•