A Letter To My Warren Boys

Dear Derek & Ty,

I wonder if you know how unique you are. I wonder if you realize how truly special you are. You are Warren boys ... and that is something to take a great deal of pride in.

There have been generation after generation after generation of boys named 'Warren" before you. But it is only recently that the term "Warren boys" has gathered such a singular distinction. The new and true definition of Warren boys was established long ago by your father and your Uncle Chuckie. We were the first iron-clad, dyed-in-the-wool Warren boys ... we gave significance to the term. We established the parameters from which all future Warren boys, such as yourselves, would be judged. And now it falls on you, the next and the greatest generation of Warren boys, to carve out greater lives and grander stories and legends.

Do you know what 'Warren" means? "To Preserve" ... and that is the task that now falls to you. To preserve the character of the Warren name ... and more importantly, to preserve the unparalleled and sublime grandeur of being a Warren boy.

Sounds all highly dignified, doesn't it? In some ways it is, but in many ways, it is not. It is simply a matter of pride.

You see, your dad and your Uncle Chuckie were as opposite as opposite can be. We really were. Your grandmother may say differently, but trust me ... I was there. Our personalities were different, our eye color was different, our talents were different and our skills were different. Your old man did fairly well in school, your Uncle Chuckie did not. Your Uncle Chuckie could make music out of anything, your dad can not. But there was a special, almost magical knowledge that we always possessed ... our differences made us matchless individually and extraordinary together. Knowingly or unknowingly, we lived by the same code. The same code that I will now share with you:

1. The Warren boys are not afraid to take chances.
2. The Warren boys always appreciate the skills and talents of others ... and always have a desire to follow that up with a "now see what I can do."
3. The Warren boys bask in the glory of the moment ... even if those moments seem to come too few and far between.
4. The Warren boys will fight (and fight hard!) for what is right.
5. No one (and I mean NO ONE) says anything derogatory about a Warren boy ... except another Warren boy ... and gets away with it.
6. Give joy as often as possible. Receive joy and then quickly pass it on. Don't bogard the joy!
7. Do no harm to others (unless they have it coming) and never be afraid to bend the rules when necessary.
8. Stand up for your loved ones. Stand beside your loved ones. Put your loved ones ahead of yourself ... even if they are acting like idiots.

In all honesty, that's a hard code to live by ... and we didn't always succeed. But we tried. Always.

The freedom to be atypical and stand apart from commonality (and more importantly, to support others in their special uniqueness) is what gives the Warren boy his swagger. It's a confidence bordering on cockiness. It's our strength ... because no matter what others may think or say about us, we know the other Warren boy has our backs. It allows us to be ourselves without (too much) concern of what others may think of us. It allows us to move forward in this grand adventure we call life. We are a very exclusive club ... there have only been four of us ... and as wonderful as so many people are that you will meet, they aren't Warren boys.

Warren boys defy the odds. Your uncle had a pacemaker put in when he was only thirteen years old. I remember your grandmother telling a neighbor that it was very likely Chuck would not live to be eighteen. Screw that! He lived to double that ... and he lived his few short years with us hard, fast and full of vigor! I was blessed to learn from the "original" Warren boy ... live for the moment, because the moment is all we really have.

Warren boys are filled with talent! Just look at yourselves. That talent is just as important as your life ... because talent, however large or small, is what makes life worth living. It's what we can share with the world ... and we don't share it to become rich and famous, we share it because we have it to give. Nurture it ... it is the garden of your soul ... sometimes it blooms, sometimes it rests ... protect it and love it.

Lastly, Warren boys would give their lives for one another. You know I would give my life for either of you. But did you know that your Uncle Chuckie would have too? I don't know many truths in this world ... but I know that.

This life is going to knock you on your ass from time to time ... it does it to everybody, but has a special fondness for knocking down a Warren boy ... and there are going to be times when you genuinely question whether or not you can go on. There will be times of great sadness, there will be losses too painful to imagine, there will be times when you question your self-worth and ask God why he has made this life so difficult. There's not a cure-all for those times. I wish I had one to give you. I wish I could take every ounce of pain you will ever encounter upon myself. But it doesn't work that way ... we can only offer one another our undying support ... and it is "undying" because I look at the two of you and I see the spirit of your Uncle Chuckie flowing through you. That support, that love, truly NEVER dies.

But I do know what will help you get through those moments. Just look at yourself in the mirror and say, "I'm a Warren boy." Eventually, the swagger will return to your step. I promise.

Love,
Dad