Catalina's Milky Way Dreams(c) Re- Written 2024 - By The Depressed Poet, Doc Dalton
Shooting Stars and fast moving CarsRumble through the roads of my mindTick-e-ty Tock, the old sounds of the clockSay's it's almost a quarter past nine
The moons surely rising, the stars are a glidingAnd Mr. Sandman is ready to roamHurry off to bed and put your pillow under your headHe might just be visiting you tonight at homeDrifting off to sleep is such a wonderful featAdventures you'll enjoy on your ownMaking new friends on a journey to no endA secrete life that is yours all aloneDon't be afraid of those gobble lee goo'sOr those pirates drifting to sea on their boatsThere's no need to worry there just in your dreamsLike rainbow clouds and cotton candy floatsOh that sky's full of colors of make believe wondersExciting every step of the wayCan't you let me stay for just a little bit longerPlease, don't take my Dreams a wayTo see this through a child's eyesOn the path to where stars brightly beamThrough a different world of twist and twirlsWon't you come to my Milky Way DreamsWe could have so much funUnder an ice cream sun and laugh our time awaySing some M & M songs the whole day longUntil we awake to brand new day
Pluto say's hey kiddo don't get out of bedAs Snakel Puss laughs and says, ah it's OKKKKKKKKPopeye yell's, were gone in a minute after I eat me spinachPoo say's all aboard my Banana Split SleighOh that Sky's full of colors of make believe wondersExciting every step of the wayCan't you let me stay for just a little bit longerWorry not Catalina, we won't take your Dreams a way
To see this through a child's eyesOn the path to where stars brightly beamThrough a different world of twist and twirlsWon't you come to my Milky Way Dreams
Catalina say's, please come join me, on my Milky Way Dreams
I was only eighteen days old when my life changed forever. Truth be told, I don't remember any of it. I don't remember the ride home, the first time they held me, or the first smile that crossed their faces. But I sure remember everything that came after.
You see, the people who became my mom and dad were already old enough to be my grandparents. Most folks their age were slowing down. They had already put in their years. It was time to sit on the porch, drink a cup of coffee, enjoy life, and let someone else do the chasing. Instead...They chose me. They didn't have to. They could have easily said they were too old. Nobody would have blamed them. Instead, they opened their home and, more importantly, they opened their hearts.
They traded quiet mornings for a crying baby. They traded peaceful evenings for bedtime stories. They traded relaxing years for scraped knees, school plays, doctor visits, and all the little things that come with raising a little boy. Looking back now, I don't know if I ever really thanked them enough.
When you're young, you just think that's what parents do. You don't stop to think about what they gave up. You don't realize they were giving you years they could never get back. Now I do. Now that I'm an older man myself, I know exactly what they gave me. They gave me a home. They gave me laughter. They gave me discipline when I needed it. They gave me hugs when life got rough. Most of all, they gave me a life I probably never would have had otherwise.
I've lived long enough now to know that life goes by faster than we think. It seems like yesterday I was just a little kid running through the yard, and now I find myself looking in the mirror at an old man. The strange thing about getting older is this... You spend more time looking behind you than you do looking ahead. I know there are probably more days behind me than there are in front of me. That doesn't scare me. It just makes me think. I think about those two wonderful people more than ever these days. I think about the sacrifices they made. I think about the meals we shared. I think about Christmas mornings, family pictures, little conversations that seemed so ordinary back then but have become priceless today.
Funny how that works. The older you get, the more valuable the simple memories become. If I could have just one more afternoon with them, I wouldn't ask for anything fancy. I'd just want to sit around the kitchen table. Maybe we'd drink a cup of coffee. Maybe we'd laugh about old times. Maybe I'd tell them what I should have told them years ago. Thank you. Thank you for taking a chance on an eighteen-day-old baby. Thank you for believing I belonged. Thank you for loving me like I was your own from the very first day. I don't think blood is what makes a family. Love does. Love is what made us a family. They taught me how to treat people. They taught me about kindness. They taught me about doing the right thing even when nobody is watching. And without ever preaching to me, they taught me about God. Those lessons have stayed with me every day of my life. I miss them more now than I ever thought I would. People tell you time heals everything. I'm not so sure that's true. I think time simply teaches you how precious people really were. The hurt gets quieter, but the love only grows louder.
Every now and then I'll sit in my chair with a cup of coffee, close my eyes, and for just a moment I can almost hear them again. Sometimes I even smile. Not because they're gone... But because they were here. How blessed was I that two people who could have spent their later years taking it easy decided instead to spend them raising me That's a pretty amazing gift when you stop and think about it. One day, the good Lord will call my name too. When that day comes, I hope the first two people I see are the same two people who first chose me all those years ago. I hope they're standing there smiling. And I hope I finally get to hug them one more time. Until then, I'll keep carrying them with me. In my heart. In my stories. In my prayers. And in every good thing I try to do. Because eighteen days after I entered this world... Two beautiful people changed my life forever. Mom... Dad... I still miss you. From then... To now.
You see, the people who became my mom and dad were already old enough to be my grandparents. Most folks their age were slowing down. They had already put in their years. It was time to sit on the porch, drink a cup of coffee, enjoy life, and let someone else do the chasing. Instead...They chose me. They didn't have to. They could have easily said they were too old. Nobody would have blamed them. Instead, they opened their home and, more importantly, they opened their hearts.
They traded quiet mornings for a crying baby. They traded peaceful evenings for bedtime stories. They traded relaxing years for scraped knees, school plays, doctor visits, and all the little things that come with raising a little boy. Looking back now, I don't know if I ever really thanked them enough.
When you're young, you just think that's what parents do. You don't stop to think about what they gave up. You don't realize they were giving you years they could never get back. Now I do. Now that I'm an older man myself, I know exactly what they gave me. They gave me a home. They gave me laughter. They gave me discipline when I needed it. They gave me hugs when life got rough. Most of all, they gave me a life I probably never would have had otherwise.
I've lived long enough now to know that life goes by faster than we think. It seems like yesterday I was just a little kid running through the yard, and now I find myself looking in the mirror at an old man. The strange thing about getting older is this... You spend more time looking behind you than you do looking ahead. I know there are probably more days behind me than there are in front of me. That doesn't scare me. It just makes me think. I think about those two wonderful people more than ever these days. I think about the sacrifices they made. I think about the meals we shared. I think about Christmas mornings, family pictures, little conversations that seemed so ordinary back then but have become priceless today.
Funny how that works. The older you get, the more valuable the simple memories become. If I could have just one more afternoon with them, I wouldn't ask for anything fancy. I'd just want to sit around the kitchen table. Maybe we'd drink a cup of coffee. Maybe we'd laugh about old times. Maybe I'd tell them what I should have told them years ago. Thank you. Thank you for taking a chance on an eighteen-day-old baby. Thank you for believing I belonged. Thank you for loving me like I was your own from the very first day. I don't think blood is what makes a family. Love does. Love is what made us a family. They taught me how to treat people. They taught me about kindness. They taught me about doing the right thing even when nobody is watching. And without ever preaching to me, they taught me about God. Those lessons have stayed with me every day of my life. I miss them more now than I ever thought I would. People tell you time heals everything. I'm not so sure that's true. I think time simply teaches you how precious people really were. The hurt gets quieter, but the love only grows louder.
Every now and then I'll sit in my chair with a cup of coffee, close my eyes, and for just a moment I can almost hear them again. Sometimes I even smile. Not because they're gone... But because they were here. How blessed was I that two people who could have spent their later years taking it easy decided instead to spend them raising me That's a pretty amazing gift when you stop and think about it. One day, the good Lord will call my name too. When that day comes, I hope the first two people I see are the same two people who first chose me all those years ago. I hope they're standing there smiling. And I hope I finally get to hug them one more time. Until then, I'll keep carrying them with me. In my heart. In my stories. In my prayers. And in every good thing I try to do. Because eighteen days after I entered this world... Two beautiful people changed my life forever. Mom... Dad... I still miss you. From then... To now.
