13. Franklin's Tower

 The Grateful Dead have arrived on the blog with a song that reminds me of the days when I thought anything was possible.  Unlike the the previous blog post this one makes me optimistic.  This song is all about the music and the long jams and the feeling of freedom they bring.  To me this song is a song of spring and summer.  I remember seeing the remnants of the Dead at Further Festival in high school and hearing the sharp notes cutting through the heavy clouds of smoke and watching hippie girls spinning in the wind on the big hill at the World Music Theater.  Good times. 

Even more than that memory I am taken back to Freshman year at IU and it is one of those beautiful 70 degree February or March days that tend to pop up in southern Indiana from time to time. Some guys brought out their guitars and amps and just jammed on this song in the courtyard.  The sunshine and music brought out hundreds of residents. We hung from windows, went out, hung out and enjoyed the day.  The kind of thing that only college can allow you to do.

 I am taken back to walking out of my college apartment welcomed by the smell of grilling burgers and faint sounds of music in the distance on a beautiful early spring day.  The kind of day that had everyone skipping class, hanging out and feeling great.  The kind of day where anything was possible and all was right with the world. 

 This song kind of has become a soundtrack to the first few beautiful days of spring weather or the rare times we have some downtime on a beautiful summer day. A song to remember what it was like to be worry free and relax. I don't know when I lost the ability to feel like anything was possible, but it was likely once I realized that responsibility and growing up doesn't lend itself to impromptu concerts, parties or random days in the warm breeze just hanging out.  I wasn't always old before my time, but I would give a whole hell of a lot to walk outside one day forget about the crazy world we live, hang out with the ones I love just waiting to see where the day will take us and feeling like anything was possible.