“What stupid poem, could fix this home?
I'd read it every day”
This song is an interesting one to me because I can relate to it from the kid’s point of view but I can also understand it from the parents’ point of view. Any child that comes from a divorced family can probably relate to it and I went through the divorce thing twice as a child. From the parent’s perspective I do not believe in staying together JUST for the kids but I do believe that once you bring children into the world you need to really make sure there isn’t anything left worth saving before you break up THEIR family. I think Larry and I did the best we could at the time and I just hope we did not scar our children too much as we went through difficulties in our marriage.
Larry’s Perspective:
Yes, Shannon chose a blink-182 song. I love my influence on my wife!
If you read this and you've happened to have been married and had kids and then divorced, I apologize in advance.
This is a tough song about divorce as seen through the eyes of a child and it's somewhat autobiographical in nature from both Tom and Mark's perspective.
Unfortunately for me, this is one of those situations where I can't remove myself from myself and put myself in one of those parental situations. I cannot fathom marrying someone, having children and then essentially destroying, at minimum, three lives. I know I come at this from a perspective of being fortunate to have experienced a single family unit my entire life.
And I know it's that experience as well as watching other families around me burn down that enabled me, and Shannon, to provide the same fortune to our sons.
But as I sit here typing, I can't gloss over the fact that Shannon had the exact opposite experience as me. If you didn't catch her earlier post that touched on this, her biological father passed away before she was even born. Her mom married again (and divorced); married again (and divorced); and married again (and divorced). Quite honestly - that's what we are aware of - there could have been additional marriages.
Each one of those marriages resulted in children - and I can say with all honesty - each one is damaged. And not one has a relationship with their mom currently.
Songs like this make me so angry; that people have to experience things that are not their fault, but the ripple effects are so long lasting. That there is a need to actually write this experience down.
But I am glad songs like this exist, because at the end of the day, I have to believe it is somewhat cathartic. They can see "I'm not alone and someone else is working through the same shit I am..."
30th Anniversary
Our Story - Shannon's Perspective
Our Story - Larry's Perspective
Ghost of a Chance (Rush) and why?
Ghost of a Chance 