Dear Beverly

This morning your memory remains within my heart.

         Mi Amor, you remembered me.

Always.  Always.

It was so simple.

Deceptively so.

For months we had talked,

but not about it.  It!

It was the elephant in the room.

You knew it.  I knew it.

I picked you up at your mom’s

and we went to lunch.

You had found a place

called Bella Luna. 

Funny, but you liked saying it,

“Bella Luna, Bella Luna.”  

It was lyrical.

It was in the center

by the freeway

on Ventu Parkway.

We took a place in the corner;

windows to your back

and to your right.

It was a sunny day. 

The sunlight lit the room.

The years hadn’t been kind.

But you remained beautiful.

Your smile; your humor.

The pleasant way about you.

Kind; sweet … and yet guarded.

A black hole on some days.

You had lost everything.

Your home; your painted sunflowers.

The real estate bubble took the condo too.

Your job was gone.  

Now you were living with Fran.

You had been through hell,

but there was still more to come.

The packages of hate

arrived on a regular basis.

The almost daily text messages

and phone calls came

crashing in on you as well.

The nasty emails to you; to me.  

Copies cut and pasted,

Assembled, copied and delivered

by hand or by mail to harass

and to isolate you.

Sick.

With Fran, you were safe.

There we sat

in the corner of the café.

We talked.  We ordered lunch.

We talked about this and that.

And then suddenly you said,

“I made a terrible mistake.”

Even today I can see it clearly,

you saying the words.

The elephant was suddenly loose.

I knew immediately

what you were trying to say;

what you wanted to say.

but it couldn’t be.  

The wall between us

needed to come down. 

We needed peace …

all the years; all the hurt …

it had to go.

I stopped you before

you could go further and said,

“You made no mistakes.”

“You have three beautiful children.”

“They are not mistakes.”

You so desperately

needed to hear the love.

Despite everything,

the outcome was a blessing.

In that moment we were free.

The why of it didn’t matter;

lost to time.

I look back on that lunch.

I look back on that day

when you brought your infant son

to me and the pledge

between us was made.

That day.  That lunch.

They were like dots

connected through time.

Last June’s phone call

was another dot; the last dot

on the pages of our lives.

All connected …

I am blessed to

have known you.

I am blessed to

have called you my friend.

I am blessed to

have loved you; love you still.

I am blessed for

all that I have in my life.

I wish I could change things.

I would change many things.

But you take the blessings with the bad.

That’s life.

On a day; a sunny day

at the Bella Luna

you and I found peace.

I am blessed.

Have a tune for you today 

Last June, "Said goodbye, turned around
And you were gone, gone, gone
Faded into the setting sun,
Slipped away"

... enjoy. 

Link:   Carrie Underwood: See You Again

Said goodbye, turned around
And you were gone, gone, gone
Faded into the setting sun,
Slipped away
But I won’t cry
Cause I know I’ll never be lonely
For you are the stars to me,
You are the light I follow
 
I’ll See you again, oh
This is not where it ends
I will carry you with me, oh
Till I see you again

I can hear those echoes in the wind at night
Calling me back in time
Back to you
In a place far away
Where the water meets the sky
The thought of it makes me smile
You are my tomorrow

I’ll See you again, oh
This is not where it ends
I will carry you with me, oh
Till I see you again

Sometimes I feel my heart is breaking
But I stay strong and I hold on cause I know
I’ll see you again, oh
This is not where it ends
I will carry you with me, yeah yeah

I’ll See you again, oh
This is not where it ends
I will carry you with me, oh
Till I see you again
Till I see you again,
Till I see you again,
Said goodbye turned around
And you were gone, gone, gone.

Dear Beverly

Just stopped in to say hello.

         You remembered me.

Always.

Sorry about your boys last night.

Those nasty Giants!!!

Kershaw pitched a great game,

but he got no run support.

Posey with a walk-off

in the bottom of the ninth

to win it two to one.   Sorry.

Have a tune for you today …

It’s a fun one … enjoy.

Link:  The Lumineers: Ho Hey

 (Ho!)

(Hey!)
(Ho!)
(Hey!)

(Ho!) I've been trying to do it right
(Hey!) I've been living a lonely life
(Ho!) I've been sleeping here instead
(Hey!) I've been sleeping in my bed,
(Ho!) I've been sleeping in my bed
(Hey!)

(Ho!)

(Ho!) So show me family
(Hey!) All the blood that I would bleed
(Ho!) I don't know where I belong
(Hey!) I don't know where I went wrong
(Ho!) But I can write a song
(Hey!)

1, 2, 3
I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart
I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweet
(Ho!)

(Hey!)
(Ho!)
(Hey!)

(Ho!) I don't think you're right for him
(Hey!) Look at what it might have been if you
(Ho!) Took a bus to China Town
(Hey!) I'd be standing on Canal
(Ho!) And Bowery
(Hey!)
(Ho!) And she'd be standing next to me
(Hey!)

1, 2, 3
I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart
I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart

Love ‒ we need it now
Let's hope for some
So, we're bleeding out

I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweetheart
I belong with you, you belong with me, you're my sweet
(Ho!)

(Hey!)
(Ho!)
(The last one)
(Hey!)

Dear Beverly

Just stopped by to say hello.

             You remembered me.

Always.

Have a request today.

A fond memory of

good times spent with you.

Your tune today is

from that special night … enjoy

Link:   Jethro Tull: Aqualung

Sitting on the park bench --
eyeing little girls with bad intent.
Snot is running down his nose --
greasy fingers smearing shabby clothes.
Aqualung
Drying in the cold sun --
Watching as the frilly panties run.
Aqualung
Feeling like a dead duck --
spitting out pieces of his broken luck.
Whoa, aqualung

Sun streaking cold --
an old man wandering lonely.
Taking time
the only way he knows.
Leg hurting bad,
as he bends to pick a dog-end --
he goes down to the bog
and warms his feet.

Feeling alone --
the army's up the road
salvation a la mode and
a cup of tea.
Aqualung my friend --
don't you start away uneasy
you poor old sod, you see, it's only me.
Do you still remember
The December's foggy freeze --
when the ice that
clings on to your beard was
screaming agony.
And you snatch your rattling last breaths
with deep-sea-diver sounds,
and the flowers bloom like
madness in the spring.

Dear Beverly

Just stopped in to say hello.

           You remembered me.

Always.

You could be so funny.

Walking back from the

REO Speedway concert.

You could be so funny.

Have a tune for you today … enjoy.

Link:  REO Speedwagon: Keep On Loving You

You should've seen by the look in my eyes, baby
There was somethin’ missin’
You should've known by the tone of my voice, maybe
But you didn't listen
You played dead
But you never bled
Instead you lay still in the grass
All coiled up and hissin’
And though I know all about those men
Still I don't remember
Cause it was us baby, way before then
And we're still together
And I meant, every word I said
When I said that I love you I meant
That I love you forever

And I'm gonna keep on lovin’ you
Cause it's the only thing I wanna do
I don't wanna sleep
I just wanna keep on lovin’ you

And I meant every word I said
When I said that I love you I meant
That I love you forever

And I'm gonna keep on lovin’ you
Cause it's the only thing I wanna do
I don't wanna sleep
I just wanna keep on lovin’ you

Dear Beverly

-->

Just stopped in to say hello.

           You remembered me.

Always.

Beautiful day on the way.

I wish … yeah, I wish.

I was going to say, but,

Sady, so sadly, it is not important.

Oh well (oh wells).

Your boys won last night.

13 and 13, 2 and half back.

Beckett goes today,

hasn’t won yet.

0 and 3 to start the season.

Maybe he is due.

Oh well (oh wells).

Have a tune for you today … enjoy.

Meat Loaf:   Objects in the Rear View Mirror MayAppear Closer Than They Are

The skys were pure and the fields were green,
and the sun was brighter than it's ever been
When I grew up with my best friend, Kenny,
we were close as any brothers that you ever knew

It was always summer and the future called
We were ready for adventures and we wanted them all,
and there was so much left to dream,
and so much time to make it real

But I can still recall the sting of all the tears when he was gone
They say he crashed and burned, I swear I'll never learn,
why any boy should die so young

We were racing; we were soldiers of fortune
We got in trouble but we sure got around
There are times I think I see him peeling out of the dark
I think he's right behind me now, and he's gaining ground

But it was long ago, and it was far away
Oh God, it seems so very far,
and if life is just a highway, then the soul is just a car

And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
They are

And when the sun descended and the night arose
I heard my father cursing everyone he knows
He was dangerous and druk and defeated,
and corroded by failure and envy and hate

There were endless winters and the dreams would freeze
No where to hide and no leaves on the trees,
and my father's eyes were blank as he hit me again and again and again

I know I still believe he'd never let me leave, I had to run away alone
So many threats and fears, so many wasted years,
before my life became my own

And though the nightmares should be over,
some of the terrors are still intact
I'll hear that ugly, coarse, and violent voice,
and then he grabs me from behind, and then he pulls me back

But it was long ago, and it was far away
Oh God, it seems so very far,
and if life is just a highway, then the soul is just a car

And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
They are

There was a beauty living on the edge of town
She always put the top up and the hammer down,
and she taught me everything I'll ever know,
about the mystery and the muscle of love

The stare would glimmer and the moon would glow
I'm in the back seat with my Julie like Romeo
And the signs along the highway all said
Caution! Kids at play!

Those were the rights of spring and we did everything;
There was salvation every night
We got dreams reborn and our upholstery torn,
but everything we tried was right

She used her body just like a bandage
She use my body just like a wound
I'll probably never know where she disappeared,
but I can see rising up out of the back seat now,
just like an angel rising out of a tomb

But it was long ago, and it was far away
Oh God, it seems so very far,
and if life is just a highway, then the soul is just a car

And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are
And objects in the rear view mirror may appear closer than they are

She used her body just like a bandage
She used my body just like a wound
I'll probably never know where she disappeared,
but I can see her rising up out of the back seat now...

Dear Beverly

-->

Just stopped by to say hello.

         Oh Doll, you remembered me.

Always.

Retribution?

The friend?

The sibling?

The child?

God?

Who?

Have a tune for you today … enjoy.

Link:   Mumford & Sons: Keep the Earth Below My Feet

--> You were cold as the blood through your bones

And the light which led us from our chosen homes
Well I was lost

And now I sleep
Sleep the hours and that I can't weep
When all I knew was steeped in blackened holes
I was lost

Keep the earth below my feet
For all my sweat, my blood runs weak
Let me learn from where I have been
Keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn
Keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn

And I was still
I was under your spell
When I was told by Jesus all was well
So all must be well

Just give me time
You know your desires and mine
So wrap my flesh in ivy and in twine
For I must be well

Keep the earth below my feet
For all my sweat, my blood runs weak
Let me learn from where I have been
Oh keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn
Oh keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn

Keep the earth below my feet
For all my sweat, my blood runs weak
Let me learn from where I have been
Keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn
Keep my eyes to serve, my hands to learn

Dear Beverly

Just stopped by to say hello.

       You remembered me.

Always.

You boys are 12 and 12

as order was restored yesterday

by your boy Kershaw.

How he has lost

two games is a head-scratcher.

Have a tune for you today … enjoy.

Link:  Black Sabbath: Paranoid

Finished with my woman
'cause she couldn't help me with my mind
People think I'm insane
because I am frowning all the time

All day long I think of things
but nothing seems to satisfy
Think I'll lose my mind
if I don't find something to pacify

Can you help me, occupy my brain?
Oh yeah
I need someone to show me
the things in life that I can't find
I can't see the things that make true happiness,
I must be blind

Make a joke and I will sigh
and you will laugh and I will cry
Happiness I cannot feel and
love to me is so unreal

And so as you hear these words
telling you now of my state
I tell you to enjoy life
I wish I could but it's too late