The Best Of Times

[Music by Petrucci, Portnoy, Rudess and Myung, Lyrics by Mike Portnoy]

Remember days of yesterday
How it flew so fast
The two score and a year we had,
I thought it would always last
Those summer days and west coast dreams
I wished would never end
A young boy and his father,
Idol and best friend

I’ll always remember
Those were the best of times
A lifetime together
I’ll never forget

The morning shows on the radio
The case of the missing dog
Lying on the pillows at the old 812
Watching Harold and Maude
The record shops, the stickball fields
My home away from home
And when we weren’t together
The hours on the phone

I’ll always remember
Those were the best of times
I’ll cherish them forever
The best of times

But then came the call
Our lives changed forever more
“You can pray for a change
But prepare for the end…”

The fleeting winds of time
Flying through each day
All the things I should’ve done
But time just slipped away
Remember seize the day
Life goes by in the blink of an eye
With so much left to say

These were the best of times
I’ll miss these days
Your spirit lit my life each day

Thank you for the inspiration
Thank you for the smiles
All the unconditional love
That carried me for miles
It carried me for miles
But most of all thank you for my life

These were the best of times
I’ll miss these days
Your spirit lit my life each day
My heart is bleeding bad
But I’ll be OK
Your spirit guides my life each day

[In Loving Memory of Howard Portnoy 1940-2009]