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Every Day is Precious: Uplifted by a living room concert
By ROB PAYNE
For Williamson A.M.
Dave and Patti live next door to us. Several weeks ago he was at his mailbox and I was at ours. We waved, then approached each other to be sociable. At some point in the conversation he said, ''I was thinking maybe Patti and I could come over and you and I could jam some.'' I knew Dave is a songwriter and he plays guitar and sings at his church. I also know that even though I've been playing guitar since I was 12, I've only played off and on. And even when I am playing, I'm more off than on. And my singing even to people who love me has been known to clear a room, then peel the paint off it. So Dave and Patti came over. Before they arrived, I took my guitar out of its case, polished it and tuned it, and cut the fingernails of my left hand. (Note to self: maybe if part of your preparation included practicing, your playing would be better.) Dave started strumming a few chords, humming, then singing. After a few minutes of me holding my guitar while Dave played and sang, Dave said, ''This is an easy one. It's just C,'' (me, to myself, ''oh, good, I know that one,'') ''G,'' (me again, to myself, ''hey, that's the first chord I learned,'') ''and an inverted version of D sus 9.'' Me, out loud this time, ''You go ahead, I'll see if I can catch up.'' I quietly put my guitar down as Marcy and I listened to song after song that Dave had written and was singing so beautifully in our living room. Some were funny, some were more melancholy, all were inspirational and touched a nerve with Marcy and me. (Learn more about Dave and sample his music at www.clearchannelnewmusicnetwork.com/artist/daverose.) I had been feeling pretty proud of myself for getting to know my neighbors better. Two years after the diagnosis of a life-threatening disease, our neighbors started doing things for us that pushed us beyond the wave and the head nod as we passed (in our minivans) on the street. I now had the names and phone numbers of dozens of neighbors. And I even called them when we needed something done for us. That was much more than I had ever done in any neighborhood I've lived in my 27 years of home ownership in four states. But as I listened to the remarkable talent that lives right next door, I realized I hadn't known him at all. All my ''knowledge'' was inbound our neighbors were reaching out to us, learning how they could help us and giving us ways to ask them for help. Listening to his songs and talk between songs, I learned about Dave. He is a spirit-filled, life loving, passionate and compassionate giver of joy. I am blessed to be living next door to him. If you know a family in need, consider giving a concert in their living room. If you are not a musician, you probably know someone who is. Better yet, consider sharing your talents whatever they are with someone in need. Your outreach might just put a song in their heart.
Every Day Is Precious is a column to remind us to treat everyone we see today as if it could be the last time we see them. It is written by Rob Payne, whose wife, Marcy, was diagnosed with ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease) in August 2000. Now 40 years old, she has gone from winning 5 and 10K races to being quadriplegic and on a ventilator at home. For more ways to help others, to find more about Marcy, or to receive e-mail updates on her condition, visit www.everydayisprecious.com. Readers may contribute to her care by sending donations to Every Day Is Precious, 2051 Harvington Drive, Franklin, TN 37069. If you have helped someone without being asked, or know of someone who has, share it with others. Send to rob@everydayisprecious.com or to Every Day Is Precious, 2051 Harvington Drive, Franklin, TN 37069.
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