Thank you, Jakob Dylan

"Here it comes and there it goes, the unbearable sound of the earth making men out of boys."

I heard a song tonight that I've never heard before. I was watching a DVR'ed episode of the Guitar Center series where they have artists perform and Nic Harcourt interviews them. We have several of these episodes from CAKE to Weezer to Jakob Dylan, so I thought I'd watch a few before they got deleted off the system due to lack of space. Our DVR does that and I'm always bummed out when it happens.

Jakob doesn't talk about his dad. He would do a good imitation of his father, I'm sure. He seems down to earth and honest. He isn't pretentious like the lead singer of CAKE. He isn't spiritually weird like Weezer dude. He just answers questions, and is kind of boring.

Until he sings.

"On Up the Mountain" was one of the songs he sang, with a lovely accompaniment by a female vocalist that I do not know. The words are almost cowboy poetry. Simple words about the wisdom of living up high the hill, and the sad solitude of people down in the valley. And he sings the above line about the unbearable sound of the earth making men out of boys... and I started to cry.

I've been so deeply moved lately by Geoff and my relationship with him over all these years. I had a wonderful time with him this weekend out on walks in the woods with dogs and sweatshirts slowly shed as we worked up warmth. Geoff was full of jokes and happiness, and the peepers in the pond were singing and making us aware of the wonderful onset of spring. It was a fantastic weekend.

"First you learn then you'll teach, about the bright, bright light making its way on up the mountain night and day."

Geoff got in huge trouble in school today. They were having a debate in English class and I'm not even sure of the TOPIC of the debate but he closed with some insensitive and over the top remarks. Rather sexist, and I think in the long term he was going for a laugh more than anything. He told me later he didn't mean it the way it came out. But he's got a detention now and hates himself.

"I am doomed to be alone the rest of my life. No girls will ever date me now after what I said. Not until I leave for college somewhere like New Zealand or something and make a new start."

You'll get tired and you'll get weak but you won't abandon your masterpiece.

I am not entirely sure that I'm looking at a masterpiece today. Over the weekend, yes. But we run into hiccups in the development of men out of boys, don't we?