It was a gift... unexpected... and unaware you needed it until it was there.
The best kind of gift.
Lunchtime in downtown StP. The tension of a work morning at a terminal screen raised the anxiety level.
Where was the relief?
It came in the form of music.
Everywhere you turned the notes came at you - on a course to soothe.
From Mancini's Pink Panther theme to Brubeck's "Take Five" to Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower."
The songs were different but they all plucked the same chord within.
You found yourself noticing the friendly nods of the musicians to those who went by.
You smiled at their understated "thank you" as the passerbys dropped money into the plastic coffee can or the saxophone case.
It was a gift, by God.
A few bucks wasn't nearly enough in return.
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Comments: 28
If there is anything more positively American than that, you have to tell me about it.
I think of the barrista I go to -- every day it's a smile and a joke. Or the reporter I once worked with who was as good as they get... and every person viewed him as tough and "a hell of a guy." Because he showed respect and took no offense at those who would try to poke back at him.
You have once again inspired me to write more than is appropriate for a comment, so I've turned my commentary into an article called "The Spirit of Music".
Here's a teaser:
"Perhaps it is not known among those who are listening, but they are engaged in a partnership with the musicians. The audience is a vital and necessary component of the music, and it is their spirit as well that comes back to them in waves of air."
Thanks… (This is a comment link for A Stone's Throw Away. It was written for you're entertainment. Don't click this link until you're in the mood to be entertained.)
Thanks for capturing that moment of recognition.
Music is a passion that's not given enough credit, by certain artists that struggle for everything. It is said but true.
Very well done!