"Better Together"

23 February 2017:

"Love is the answer.
At least for most of the questions in my heart.
Like: 'Why are we here?', 'And where do we go?,
'And how come it's so hard?'
It's not always easy,
And sometimes life can be deceiving
I'll tell you one thing:
It's always better when we're together." --Jack Johnson, "Better Together"

Sometimes I get the idea that the universe wants me to stop and think about my brother Ryan. I mean, I think about him all the time, but sometimes it just surprises me when things hit me out of the blue and I wonder what kind of conspiracy is going on.

Today was another abnormally warm and beautiful day. I found myself walking down by the river and as I got back to my car, I passed a group of college students (football players, if I was recognizing them correctly) heading down to the banks to do some fishing. I thought, for a microsecond, "The next time Ryan visits, I'd like to fish with him down here." And then...yeah...not going to happen. And just like every time it happens, it is crushing. (Reminds of this poem which I was just talking about yesterday with my students...further evidence of the conspiracy!)

Then I got home and got back to grading midterms. And this little Jack Johnson song comes on. Ryan loved Jack Johnson. Honestly, I could go either way, but I never change away from his songs because as silly as it sounds, it would be like switching away from my brother. Today I actually found myself listening to the lyrics of this one. And yeah...I get it universe. I get it.