its a start

so I tried the new song out on my wife.

and she liked it.

the best part is calvin stopped his video game addiction and came over to me and put his hands on my knee the way he used to when I played.

It's funny that the first line of the chorus came directly from something that calvin had said that bruised my tender little heart.

but it requires a little splainin.

Way back in summer of aught 8 (2008 for those of you that don't get the aught joke.), Calvin was my music buddy. Each night after dinner, while my wife diligently did the dishes, I would grab my guitar and begin to play. Calvin, being my music buddy, would grab his ukeleli, a green pick and would thrash along with me. He would pick the songs and we would spend the next half hour playing. When the dishes were done and I was out of breath, we would call "break time."

"Two more songs and then break time" I would say.

"No daddy. THREE more songs and then break time." he would say holding up four fingers.

"How about TWO more and then break time?" I would say holding up six fingers.

"No daddy. THREE more songs and then break time." he would reply holding up five fingers.

"Okay . . . two more songs then."

"No daddy. Three." he would whisper in exasperation.

He wasn't quite three years old.

In the following six months we would play whenever I wasn't exhausted. My wife got sick and required a little more of my care. Our diets and exercise routines fell by the wayside. I got a little fatter, a little more out of shape, a little depressed, and a little less inclined to play. Calvin discovered cars and toys that weren't musical instruments. He discovered "WALL E" and the Wii.

And then one day it just happened.

I picked up my guitar from its dusty corner and began to play.

Seeing that he wasn't insterested, I began to play something faster with a little more volume. He paused his video game and walked over to me.

"Daddy, don't play so loud." he said

"Okay."

And that was that. I just had to except the fact that he had other things going on in his life. We hadn't played since. I would just hide in the garage to write and practice so as not to disturb his game play.

That, not incidently, is the first line of the chrous:

Don't play too loud, don't stand so close,
I need more light than you're shadow can provide.

But last night, as I played the new song for my wife, he stopped and listened.

Its a start.