The Wonderment of You: Philadelphia

"...but you'll never see the end of the road while you're traveling with me"*

The streets of Philadelphia were in cheer today as the Phillies paraded as World Series champs with the pride of besting the Devil Rays. It's definitely a Philadelphia day. I was musing about this later in the day while on a walk when Springsteen's, "Streets of Philadelphia" started to play on the iPod. It's the only Springsteen song I own as I'm not a huge fan. But somehow this song always resonated with me. It's a haunting song from the movie "Philadelphia". Maybe haunting isn't the right word, but the lyrics are very strong as it recounts in first person, the story of an AIDS patient.

I still recall the movie fairly vividly. Tom Hanks and Denzil Washington were wonderful as they played their roles with such exacting feeling. I felt as though I was just watching two individuals reacting as one might in real life. While the casting of Antonio Banderas as Hanks' lover is debatable as a good choice, his undying love as his partner drifts towards his last days was engagingly written. I suppose you can say they had traveled life together and that's what mattered.

I learned yesterday that Bruce, my boss' mother passed away sometime past midnight on Friday. She was 85, about the same age as my Mom. I've known Bruce now for over 20 years. With the passing of his father a few years ago, this now leaves him alone without any living parents. Given his Mom's age her death probably didn't come as a surprise and while there is tremendous sadness, I'm sure he and his family was prepared. But suppose it had been his wife? There would be no comparison. While he may mourn his loved one's death over time, the loneliness of having to travel through the rest of his life by oneself would be heartbreaking and incomprehensible for me.

I suppose it's human nature to ponder about the end of the road. But truly, if your travels are with someone you hold dear, would you ever see the end of the road? Would there even be one? I'd like to think not.

Two tickets to Philadelphia please.

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*Neil Finn