To my son

[12.22.2013]

Dear son,

One day you will wonder
At the state of affairs of this world —
In wonder as to how it was when you first saw the light of this earth.

It is suffice to say that
You were born at an exciting time.
“What kind of time?” you asked me.
And I replied, “It was a time of great change:

When music was no longer divided by era,
With every song in the world playing at your fingertips
And every culture a niche
With every niche a subculture in itself.

When Culture — all the world’s Culture
Was no longer a one way street found in some book (the pages of which you had to turn)
And can be experienced, if not understood deeply through
the words
the sounds
the songs
All from the screen in front of you.

It was a time when people stopped looking forward
And all decided to look up;
Rather than launch a man up to the moon and back
We decided to head for Mars
And mine asteroids (among stars!) instead of the Earth.

Today if you had asked me what path I would have put you through,
Know this:
That the stars are much closer than a dream
And the Unknown, a religion you can follow fervently.”

My son, you were born at an exciting time
When cars were only beginning to drive themselves
When we wore computers on our hats
And toys we could print from home.

It was in these conditions that you were born
And as your entrusted steward I have prepared you for a life that looks beyond the horizon
Whether it is the exploration above or below the Earth.

Happy birthday.