The Riddle

There is a song "The Riddle" recorded by Five For Fighting.

The song ponders on the purpose of life, touches on mortality, and reminds us of the vulnerability and fallibility of man in the Universe. It is also a father's song to his son, inspired by the composer's own five-year-old son.

The riddle is "There is a reason for the world, You and I".

What's the answer?

*****

There was a man back in '95
Whose heart ran out of summers
But before he died, I asked him

Wait, what's the sense in life
Come over me, Come over me

He said,

"Son why you got to sing that tune
Catch a Dylan song or some eclipse of the moon
Let an angel swing and make you swoon
Then you will see, you will see."

Then he said,

"Here's a riddle for you
Find the Answer
There's a reason for the world
You and I..."

Picked up my kid from school today
"Did you learn anything cause in the world today
You can't live in a castle far away
Now talk to me, come talk to me"

He said,

"Dad I'm big but we're smaller than small
In the scheme of things, well we're nothing at all
Still every mother's child sings a lonely song
So play with me, come play with me"

And Hey Dad
Here's a riddle for you
Find the Answer
There's a reason for the world
You and I...

I said,

"Son for all I've told you
When you get right down to the
Reason for the world...
Who am I?"

There are secrets that we still have left to find
There have been mysteries from the beginning of time
There are answers we're not wise enough to see

He said... You looking for a clue. I love you free...

The batter swings and the summer flies
As I look into my angel's eyes
A song plays on while the moon is hiding over me
Something comes over me

I guess we're big and I guess we're small
If you think about it man, you know we got it all
Cause we're all we got on this bouncing ball
And I love you free
I love you freely

Here's a riddle for you
Find the Answer
There's a reason for the world
You and I...

*****

So what's the message?

Someone once said:

Sing like nobody's listening.
Work like you don't need money.
Love like you've never been hurt.
And dance like no one's watching.

Yes, truly, like the song said, we are we all we got on this "bouncing ball."

*****

Interesting trivia 1:
You probably think Five For Fighting is a group or a band. Apparently, there's only one man in this "band", and his name is John Ondrasik. He is a talented composer and musician who has produced songs like the more commercially known "100 Years", "Something About You" and "Superman (It's Not Easy)". Besides becoming an "anthem" post September 11 in the US, the song Superman was also featured in the Smallville series.

Check out also "Freedom Never Cries" and "World" which talk about freedom, war, love and life. Through his songs, Ondrasik put to good use his rare talent for poetic and profound words to talk to his audience, addressing social issues and bringing out the human spirits and his personal messages on life and humanity.

Interesting trivia 2:
The naming of the "group" was inspired by the game of Ice Hockey. As a form of discipline during the game, players who fight and lose their cool (erm, no pun intended) are sent away to the penalty box to.. what else.. cool down.. for 5 minutes. Hence, the name.