Richards ponders what he ’ s just said . It ’ s almost as if he ’ s hearing himself say these words for the first time - words and thoughts that have undoubtedly rattled inside his brain for months . Somehow hearing them out loud makes them more real .
“ I want to be here to write and finish this album ,” he continues . “ I want to be here to stay active in the music business . I want to be here for my lovely wife Suzanne as long as I can . The only way to honestly do that is to come to grips with it and not forget about it . I don ’ t pretend it doesn ’ t exist , but I ’ m not going to live in it every day . I got dealt a hand of cards I never would have expected . I can ’ t win with the deck of cards I ’ ve got , but I ’ ve still got to play them .”