How Long Have I Been Sleeping?

Well, I have returned to the homeland after a short trip to Colorado for a little skiing adventure with my Dad. I'm pretty sure that in the future a dermatologist will tell me that my decision to not wear any sunscreen for the entire first day was one of the poorer choices in my life, and I'll probably agree. With all that said, my skin is not too crispy and I am looking forward to a couple of relaxing days at home before my voyage to Boerne for the Williams/Blair nuptials.

Mark Twain once remarked, "When I was eighteen, I thought my father was the dumbest man in the world, and when I turned twenty-one, I thought he was the smartest man in the world. I was amazed at how much he learned in just three years." Now, I never thought my parents were the dumbest people in the world, but there is something special in seeing how my relationship with my parents has developed as I have grown.

We're not peers by any means. My Dad still harasses me about driving too fast, my Mom worries about what I eat, but all in all, they know that I have to take care of myself now, and their time in that role faded into the past a few years ago. It's always insightful to listen to the music that your parents love and to think about why this music means so much to them.

The only album that we listened to twice during the trip was Jackson Browne's Greatest Hits. In my opinion, Browne is one of the more underrated singer-songwriters of the 70's and 80's. I've always known that my Dad loved Browne's music and I still think of my Dad each time that I hear Browne's signature tune "The Pretender".

Music is such an intensely personal thing that frequently escapes our descriptive abilities. It is often difficult to precisely define why a certain song or band evokes a given emotion, but when we share the music that we love with others, we are ultimately sharing a small piece of ourselves with them.