What We Did
It didn't matter what day it was.
It didn't matter if we had to go to school
In the afternoon afterwards we would always build.
Then one day, we got lazy and we liked it
We stayed inside and played video games
We didn't build anything that day.
We liked it so much that we kept doing it
And doing it
And doing it
Eventually we had forgotten what it was like to create
All we wanted to do was destroy.
The virtual reality of death is nothing compared to the real thing
We learned that the hard way.
Our closest friend-Our confident-The one thing that we wanted to protect over everything else
Was dead.
He fit inside of our X-Box box, the thing that we now worshipped.
We built that day.
And the day after that
And the day after that.
Sold the X-Box and all of the games
Bought building supplies with the money
So we could start a company.
We had the perfect name.
But it was all a game, this business that we ran
We didn't think, we didn't plan
We just went with it.
It fell within two years.
We moved out of the house to start our lives
And we go to say our goodbyes
We remembered the box buried in the yard
And thank the one buried inside
For not giving up on us when we had lost ourselves.
We hugged each other and waved
As we drove in opposite directions in the rain, heading to nowhere and to somewhere.
We promised each other that we would stay in touch
Our Mom said that she missed us too much
To be able to let go.
Then you let go of the wheel of your car
Paralyzed from the waist down
It's hard to get around for you
I keep telling you words of encouragement
That maybe you might find some nourishment.
For you are my brother and I love you always
Even though I don't say it much
It still has meaning through action
And that should be enough satisfaction.
Dad kept saying that one day
He would find a way to get some pay
Enough to buy us a new pet
And this time he would go to a vet
Before thinking of something as random and quirky
As the platypus who loved to eat beef jerky.
We told him no- we didn't need it
That he could spend his money better.
"Perhaps get you a new sweater" we suggested
Dad saw no reason to argue, for he wasn't in a contest
To determine who was right and who was wrong
About how money could be spent and earned.
So that was the end of that argument
We haven't talked to him since.
We then got the call one day to someone we hadn't seen in years
We offered him to come over for beers
He said that he would be delighted
His girlfriend would be most excited to finally meet the boys who once could
Dream anything out of nails, metal and wood.
And our lives lived on and on.
Our building days long behind us
Working days done too.
Still kicking, ain't done living, just slowly dying
The painful death of old age.
Our age doesn't show though
We've got a lot to do.
Somehow we'll make it through.
I remember the one in that old box, in that old yard.
I thank him every night and every day
For giving me reason to say:
"Hey Ferb, what do you want to do today?"