“Well I’m movin’ after midnight … “
Dateline: Between dreams, and disaster … .
I am,
but a shadow of what I used to be.
And the light,
that shines on me,
is growing dim.
What is it with the water that continues to draw us in?
What is it with the water that chases us in waves and beats us down like pebbles of sand?
What is it with water that lurks beneath the surface of the lake, beneath the surface, of us?
Is the water pissed that we crawled out of it, and won’t rest, until we crawl back.
Are we drawn to the water because 60% of the human body … is it? Almost three-quarters of our brain are made of … the sea.
We are more of the water, than the fish who swim in it. We are puddles with hands and feet.
We are drawn to the water, because the water is a part of us. We are it, and it is us.
If you don’t believe me, try driving over a bridge, and not looking at the water beneath. Try driving south on Route 1A … and not looking to your left. Where the ocean lies.
You won’t, be able, to do it.
You will,
look.
To Mother Sea.
” … down boulevards of broken cars … “
I am you,
and you are
me.
Just like the sea.
Mr. Tournament Angler, Hoss, let me tell you why it is I chase you, as you chase the sea.
You chase dreams.
You chase passion.
You chase life its-own-self.
And it is the chase of dreams, of passion, of life its-own-self that defines, living. You know it, and I know it.
Because I chase the same.
I write of dreams.
I write of passion.
I write of life its-own-self.
You chase your dream with a rod and reel in hand. I chase mine, with a keyboard in hand.
We chase, in spite of ourselves.
We chase, in spite of the odds.
We chase, because it is something that we, cannot, not do.
I am,
you.
And you are,
me.
If you have given the chase your all, and then took a second mortgage, on your dreams, I can write about you, because I am you.
To chase you, I have maxed out two credit cards, as I know you have too.
To chase you, I have stood behind you in Wal-Mart Superstores and handed the checkout lady my plastic, and held my breath.
Just like you do.
To chase you, when caller ID shows an 800-number, we don’t answer the phone.
Just like you.
Living paycheck to paycheck is just a dream when you are just trying to live day to day and hoping to make it to that next check. I know.
Just like you.
If it was “reason” we chased, instead of dreams, you’d be plumbing, or selling now, and I would be sitting in a cubicle in the bowels of a building made of one-way glass.
Dreamless, passionless, lifeless. Bait on the hook just waiting for the end. Please God, take me now; just make it quick.
” … don’t know what I’d do without it … “
But you people, who I chase, you people with the dreams, with the passion, and full of life, you need to know this, cherish what you do, cherish every day, every moment, every cast, every wave.
Because dreams are fragile.
The most fragile thing on this planet.
You can save money, but there are no banks where you can save your dreams. For centuries when the bad people came storming over your border, they wanted your land and your money, but to keep the win, they had to crush your dreams.
Dreams, are the currency of the universe.
Dreams, are what made us crawl from Mother Sea up onto the beach in the first place.
Dreams are what launch you, not the Dually.
” … without this love that we call ours … “
I am,
you.
And you are,
me.
This column though, is not for you. You get it, I don’t need to explain it to you.
This column is for my wife.
This column is for my family
This column is for those in my house who cry on the pillow at night.
And for those in your house who do the same.
This is for those who understand and support the dream-chasers, while becoming victims of it all the same.
This chase, we can’t help ourselves. To say it is something we have to do is to only cheapen it. To say it is something that we were put on this planet to DO, gets closer to the fact.
We, are, the chase. There is no dividing line between me, and writing, as there is also no dividing line between you and the early morning launch.
I know you cannot think of yourself as anything other than what it is you do because without the ability to write, I would just be a shadow,
in the dark.
” … beyond here lies nothin’.”
db
Beyond Here Lies Nothin’
Bob Dylan
