Long and Winding Road

Music is a powerful thing. It's powerful for those who can do it and also for those of us who just love hearing it. Lattimore Church has always had both kinds of people.

There seems to be a musical gene in a lot of people in Lattimore and the musical talent in that little church over the years is impressive. Those of us who didn't get the performing gene did seem to get the appreciation gene. Or maybe Mrs. Lattimore and Aunt Burnette and Donnis and Bob and others just coaxed music appreciation into us. As children we sang all kinds of great old songs that I still love.

Lattimore Church still has great music and anytime there is a fifth Sunday in a month, instead of a typical 11 o'clock sermon they have a full hour of music. It can be the congregation, or choir, or special musical guests.

October had a fifth Sunday and Harrill had arranged for a very special musical guest - legendary musician Doc Watson from Deep Gap, NC. I was unable to go, but Libby had taped it on her cell phone so I did get to hear parts of it. Libby also shared a picture of Mom and Dad talking with him after the program. Daddy and Doc Watson are both 88 years old and Daddy had mentioned that he had almost stayed home that morning but was so glad he decided to go hear Doc play gospel music and talk about his life.

On the tape, I heard Doc say, "Most of the things I know about guitar I figured out for myself."

Doc is blind and learned to play guitar at the School for the Blind from a left handed guy who played a guitar that was strung upside down and backwards. Doc must have gotten a whole bunch of those music genes.

He went on to play "In the Pines" and a lot of other great songs and, as he says, his guitar still talks for him. But he did talk a bit about his faith and you could hear in his voice that his testimony was humble and honest and true. He said he had just about been dragged to church as a kid and had joined the church and then went on to live his life like he wanted to. He said a lot of the folks who claimed to be christians didn't seem to act much like it. Then he sang a song about the devil - "O Satan, he's a liar ... and he wears a hypocrites shoes".

He went on to talk about how he found peace with his faith. He said he was listening to a CD by another musician and heard Randy Travis sing, Doctor Jesus..mend my heart..heal my soul . Doc started to sing too and said, "I didn't have to tell nobody, I didn't have to cry or anything, but a feeling just came over me and it's still here."

Doc must be pretty good at figuring things out for himself.

Mom and Dad enjoyed talking with him after the program. No doubt living for more than 80 years gives people a lot of things to talk about. There are a lot of twists and turns and things to figure out along the way.

Recently, David and I took Mom and Dad up to see the beautiful fall leaves on their property at Lake Lure. David had to clear some trees to get up on the mountain and as I watched the road open up in front of us, I started thinking of the Beatles song The Long and Winding Road.

I've listened to it several times in the last few days and it's still as beautiful as ever. I read that Paul McCartney said the words were somewhat ambiguous on purpose so people could interpret them for themselves. Sometimes humans just try to explain too much and control too much. Another Paul tried to explain a lot of things several thousand years ago and people are still arguing about it all. Maybe sometimes it's good to do what the Beatles said in another song and just Let It Be.

I got a really great snapshot of Mom and Dad standing on the hill in the pines with the colorful hardwoods and beautiful lake in the background. I posted the picture on facebook and suddenly people from all over were commenting about what a special couple they are. Libby said they looked like two little children with a secret. Others commented about how happy they are.

Just before I took that picture Mama had made me laugh out loud. She can be so funny and dramatic. She was walking up the long and winding road and I was a little worried that she might trip or fall or slide on the leaves. I yelled, "Mama where are you going?" And she turned around and started dancing and singing, "The bear went Ooo-ver the Mountain, the bear went over the mountain, the bear went over the MOOOUUUNNN-TAAAIINN! To see what she could see!"

It's not that they don't have worries and sorrows and pain in their lives, it's that Mama and Daddy choose to enjoy life. They choose to have a little fun and to focus on the positive. Like another song that Mama used to sing a lot. "You've got to accent-tu-ate the positive. E-lim-inate the negative. Hold on to the affirmative. And don't mess with Mr. In Between."

Here's to Mama and Daddy - and music and mountains and long winding roads.