Manna From Listeners

People show their appreciation for the tunes I share in many ways.  Most people toss money in my guitar case.  But I'm always amazed people share other items with me to show their thanks.  Yesterday a man gave me a portfolio and inside was a leather-bound Bible.  Not just a pocket edition, but a full-size, very thick Bible.  I'm not sure that his motive was to spread The Good Word, but his intentions were sincere and the smile on his face was somewhat beatific.
Here's a list of other things people have given me over the past few months, just to give you an idea.
1. Two Narcotics Anonymous medals for good work and encouragement to stay clean
2. A new unopened tube of skin cream
3. Septa tokens
4. fresh flowers
5. granola bars
6. one-hundred personalized business cards with my name on them (a sweet old lady had printed them up for me on her computer, figuring I needed to give people my contact information)
7. A Korean embroidered key chain
8. their own music cd's
9. pretzels and sandwiches
Other people have offered services.  One young photographer did a photo shoot of me in action and then emailed me all the jpg photos for my use.
Several times I've been invited to attend a prayer meeting (somehow I haven't found the time to attend yet) and people have prayed for me and with me.  I respect that, although it does take me by surprise.  But the idea that they feel I'm doing the Lord's Work by singing my music touches me.  They even called me Brother David.
Anyway, the point is, people give what they can sometimes, and I find it very meaningful and touching.  I truly appreciate smiles and winks and thumbs-up.
I guess as long as I receive those, I'll keep singing.
Praise Everyone. 
Brother David

Joshua Bell and Me

The world-famous violinist Joshua Bell was seen busking recently in a subway station in Boston.  Many of you have probably seen the email circulating on the internet where he decided to take his 3.5 million-dollar violin into the subways and play.  I'm not sure why he did this, but maybe it was to make the point that even an virtuoso like him can go unnoticed, like a diamond in the rough, when he is put into a certain environment.  Setting can be everything. 

The email chronicles how people walked right by him, and some even threw money into his case.  He made thirty-two dollars in forty-five minutes.  That's pretty good, I'd say.  I'm not sure how long he played there.  It all sounds like an experiment for Sociology 101, where students would stage something and stand off to the side and take notes about man-on-the-street reactions.  That night Joshua Bell played a concert in Boston where the seats averaged over a hundred dollars.
This story is very comforting to me in some ways.  I play a guitar, an old Harmony Sovereign, from the sixties which belonged to my father.  That's one reason I play it.  It was my father's. The other reason I play it is because it had a big body and it projects the sound well.  My point is, it cost seventy-five dollars new back then.  It's a great guitar.  I am comforted to know that if I paid 3.5 million for a guitar that I wouldn't be making that much more money and it would never pay for itself.
I also love the environment I play in.  Mondays I play in Suburban Station.  I have my regulars, who stop by, give support in various ways.  I have my shop keepers and restaurant owners I check in with.  Even the cops and maintenance people give me a nod.  I have one person who drops off a granola bar every time he sees me.  And recently a older woman had business card made up for me, just because, without my knowledge.
People take care of me.
As the week progresses with this good weather I play in Rittenhouse Square Park.  You couldn't ask for a more beautiful stage to play on.  The azaleas are in full bloom, the trees offer delicious shade, there is a constant flow of people, who have the luxury of staying to listen or moving on, as they are not stuck in one-hundred-dollar seats, wishing they were somewhere else or itching to answer their cell phones.  Business people and shoppers enjoy their lunches on benches, and nannies congregate with their children.  On Fridays and Saturdays sometimes I'll walk on the wild side and play to a younger, more raucous crowd in Old City near the fancy restaurants and bars, where people out out to have a good time and spend money. 
It's all good.
In some ways Joshua Bell has got it made.
But you know what?  So do I.

Kids--You Gotta Love 'Em

Now that the weather is fabulous and I'm playing more outdoors in the park at Rittenhouse Square, it's natural that more children are walking by and listening.  The park is a great place to hang out on a gorgeous day...an oasis of Nature...in a landscape of steel and glass.
I have been touched, as always, by the intent interest children show when they walk by or ride by in their strollers.  Their eyes are often riveted on me.  Sometimes the mothers or nannies don't seem aware of the performance, but the children's head turn and stare, long after they pass me.  It's amazing how flexible their necks are....  Often the children stare with a serious look, and other times they grin or wave or point. 
Sometimes the mothers stop the stroller, or squat down next to their child, and listen for a while.  I'll usually change to a children's song and try to get them involved, encouraging them to finish the line and sing along.  Itsy, Bitsy, Spider and Old McDonald, and The People on the Bus are usually big hits.
I am very touched most of all when the mothers and fathers and nannies sing along with the child and encourage the child to take part.  For many it might be the first time the child has ever experienced live music.  I'm also touched when a parent tosses a donation into my guitar case, or gives the child a coin or dollar to put in the case.  Often they even guide the child over to the case and show them, this is what you can do to show your appreciation.  A teaching moment.
Yesterday I was really moved when a child, no more than eight, reached into his Disneyworld backpack.   His mother said, "Do you have something you can give the man?"  The child pulled out a crumpled dollar, no doubt his snack money, and he proudly placed it in the guitar case.
Talk about sacrifice....
I love to see children learning to appreciate music.  Discovering the magic that music can bring.  How it can connect us all.
And in the meantime, I'll have to learn a whole lot more children's songs....

Spring In Philadelphia

Last week I was singing in Rittenhouse Square.  It's been incredibly warm, like summer.  A young couple with a baby in a stroller came up to me and said, "Can you play Spring in Philadelphia for us?"  I did a double-take and said, "You mean, by August Sky?"  I couldn't believe what I was hearing.   They said, yes, and they explained that they had bought our album in a coffee shop and that they loved the song and even their baby knew it.  I was able to compose myself (I was jumping out of my skin for joy) and said, of course, I can sing it.  I proceeded to clear my throat and sing the song, which appears on August Sky's second album (give it a listen at www.cdbaby.com/augustsky2).  As I sang the song, the young couple joined in and sang along with me.
I have to admit, it pleased me to have this young couple showing so much support.
Then Ellie came along.  I mentioned her in a previous entry.  She must be 85, and she is a sweetheart.  She walked up to me, as I was singing, and said, I have a gift for you.  She presented me with one hundred business cards, which she had printed up for me, since I didn't already have business cards to hand out.  I was touched by her gesture of support.
She remained by my side, humming a soft harmony over the songs I was singing.
I am touched by this support.  This love.
I am blessed.