Pick Up the Rock, Son

Sam hates when I bring a song up on my I-pod, turn the television down and make him listen. I do it all the time with the Stones just because I know he needs to hear them.

He sort of likes the sound of Jagger's voice and knows him from that brutal, Moves Like Jagger song.

The other day it was Bruce of course. A little Shackled and Drawn.

Bruce was nice enough to sing the line, Pick up the rock, son, and carry it on.

Indeed.

And just singing that line, along with Bruce, to my son, I got the full meaning. I not only thought of Sam picking up the rock from me, but also of me carrying the rock for my Dad.

Trudging thru the dark in a world gone wrong

That's my other favorite line in the song.

"Turn it off, please!" Sam crowed. "It's awful!"

But it's not awful. Not even a little.

I suppose that there isn't much more that we can do in life then to try and build a legacy of sorts. We spend so much time trying to move the rock from one location to another that its easy to forget that we will eventually leave the rock in a spot where it will either be carried on or left to settle.

When it's all said and done how we handled the rock along the way will define us to a certain extent.

My sister is off to see Bruce tonight in Washington. I've seen the set-lists so far. She's going to have a blast. I am pretty sure that Shackled and Drawn will be one of the first half dozen songs played.

One favor, Carrot...when he utters the line about the rock just think of how far we've pushed it up the hill through the generations.

And think about those behind us...all the wise-ass little Fuzzy's...getting ready to pick it up, and throw it forward.

When Shackled and Drawn was done, Sam sat back and looked at me.

"Ready for a little Stones?" I asked.

"God no!" he yelled.

But he sat there right beside me as I sang him Tumbling Dice.

"That's just awful," he said.

No it's not.

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