Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (pronounced ka ma ka vee vo olay), or Bruddah Iz, wrote a Ukulele version of somewhere over the rainbow. You might have heard it, it is in alot of movie soundtracks. Katie and I have been listening to it. The song is beautiful. Bruddah Iz weighed 1000 pounds when he died in 1997.

The song brings out the best emotions in me. I think of the road behind me and the road yet to be. I think of the spirit of mankind to survive even the most horrible of circumstances. Many books I read show the inhumanity and the brutality we are capable of. But as long as there are songs like this, I feel that there is hope. As Tom Friedman said (paraphrasing), “Hope is not a flower, it is a weed. Give it a tiny bit of water and sunshine and it will break through concrete and spread.”

It is a wonderful and terrifying journey we are all on. Who knows what will happen next? Whatever it is, I believe it is going to be wonderful, and terrifying! Life is good.