So, I was reading various poems on the internet, always interested in seeing what moves people and what they like.  I was thinking of music as poetry.  One of my all time favorite singer/songwriters is Harry Chapin.  You may remember him as the man who wrote/sung Taxi or the Cats in the Cradle songs. 

Lots of Harry's music never appeared on the radio because his music ran too long and the themes weren't popular.  For instance, I Don't Want to Be President, which tells the story of "a young man on the move" who gets elected and realizes he really doesn't want it. 

Not the stuff of popular music.  Pk and I saw Harry in concert a few times and enjoyed every one.  One of our favorite pieces by him is

Dreams Go By


There you stand in your dungarees
Looking all grown up and so very pleased
When you write your poems they have so much to say
When you speak your dreams it takes my breath away
You know I want to be a ball player
A regular slugging fool
But both our dreams must wait awhile
Until we finish school

And so you and I
We'll watch our years go by
We'll watch our sweet dreams fly
Far away, but maybe someday
I don't know when
But we will dream again
And we'll be happy then
Till our time just drifts away

There you stand in your wedding dress
You're so beautiful that I must confess
I'm so proud you have chosen me
When a doctor is what you want to be
You know I want to be a painter, girl
A real artistic snob
But I guess we'll have our children first
You'll make a home, I'll get a job

Listen to the seasons passing
Listen to the wind blow
Listen to the children laughing
Where do broken dreams go?

There you stand in your tailored suit
So many years gone by, but your're still so cute
We take the car to go and meet the bus
When our grandchildren come to visit us
You say you should have been a ballerina, babe
There are songs I should have sung
But I guess our dreams have come and gone
You gotta dream when you are young

And so you and I
We'll watch our years go by
We'll watch our sweet dreams fly
Far away, but maybe someday
I don't know when
But we will dream again
And we'll be happy then
Till our time just drifts away


To me, it's about making a life with what you have but not losing sight of the dreams.  I didn't grow up wanting to be a social worker and I KNOW Pk didn't dream of being a Business Analyst.  But, we put the dreams on the shelf for the reality that is our life.  And we pursue the dreams in other ways.  He wanted to go to art school (he's quite talented) and now he turns his artistic eye to wood grains.  I wanted to be a psychiatrist/counselor/lawyer and I'm doing kind of what I dreamed.  I am helping people and letting my creative urges be expressed in fabrics and yarns.

And our children.  What a wonderful life they have given and continue to give us.  Would we have given any of the last 30 years up for the dreams of our youth?  I can't speak for Pk, but I wouldn't.

Remember what I said about the knitting group attendance?  About how if all the folks who said "oh, I want to come" actually came, we'd need a bigger room?  Well, yesterday besides our regular 4, we had 5 others.  A party!  It was great.  We sat around and one woman wanted to learn how to do a horseshoe cable (had to look that one up).  We figured out what she needed to do and she was off and knitting.  Others are learning to make something other than large crocheted squares.  So, all in all, a success!

Today, Pk and I took a half day and are meeting at a local place for lunch.  It's in the middle of the Italian Market   so after lunch we can wander the stalls and look at the fresh food.  It's a fascinating place.  Clothes, hauches of meat (some of which is unidentifiable), cheeses, fruits and vegetables and the smells! 

We'll grocery shop at a different store this week and then see how it goes.  We're off to Em's house for dinner on Easter and then we're off from work on Monday.  And it's sunshine all the way!

Have a happy Friday.