IRISHMAN FOR HIRE

Stephanie and I slow danced and sang along with the band on Saturday night and as we did, I just let myself become immersed in the imagery of the lyric. In a throng of supporters underneath a sea of stars at the Comcast Center, Stephanie and I were dancing with each other while Darius Rucker sang “It Won’t Be Like This For Long” as though we were the only two people at the venue.

The soulful song about a Dad and his daughter enveloped my imagination as I swayed in time to the music. I smiled as I thought about him bringing his daughter home from the hospital and the sleepless nights that ensued as he adjusted to his new life as a parent. I empathized with him as he skipped four years ahead and recounted the fears and trepidations his daughter had around sleep and going to preschool. Vividly, I could see him shrugging his shoulders and asking the teacher for help as he tried to manage the ever changing world of his little princess. And as each chorus brought the reminders from his wife and the teacher not to worry because “it won’t be like this for long,” I could remember the reassurances Stephanie has given me along the way as well. “One day we’ll look back on this fondly and laugh,” she always reminds me and something tells me that one day, we will.

I was reveling in a moment of peace and tranquility with my wife. I was dancing under the stars and as the world seemed to fade away, the song took a new lyrical twist that jolted me out of my daydream:

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“Chloe, look for the green spark before the sun goes down,” Josh said as we sat on the seawall at the end of our street and watched the sun set.

“What was that, Josh?” I asked.

“Look for the green spark!”

“What is the green spark?”

“Grampy Waltermelon told me about it. He said there is a green spark in the sky when the sun sets. Watch for it, Chloe, it’s miraculous.”

I had never heard about the “green spark” before and wanted to find out for myself if Josh was pulling my leg or not, so I Googled the term “green flash at sunset” and lo and behold, he was right. The phenomenon known as the green spark or green flash does exist. Apparently, “just as the sun slips over the horizon on a clear night, it can send up a spark of green.” Unfortunately for my family, we didn’t see the green spark the other night. The mosquitoes were starting to bite and there were too many clouds in the sky for us to have a clear view of the horizon.

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