November Update
I’m just back from one of the most important weekends of my career. It was four shows in one day in the New Orleans area in support of a project called “After the Storm” put together by Steve Siler and the organization Music For the Soul. In all, 10,000 CD’s have been given away to families in South Louisiana and South Mississippi and the organization is raising money to press more CD’s. Go to his website and BUY A CD. Make a donation. Tell a rich friend about Music For the Soul. Do SOMETHING to put this record into more hands.
Sunday evening as we met to pray and prepare for the last concert of the day at Aldersgate UMC in Slidell, LA, the pastoral counselor that had organized the concert told us who he had just met at the door. A nurse from a hospital in New Orleans East had just walked in and she stopped to tell him her story. That afternoon she had gathered together with 20 friends, (medical workers and residents of St. Bernard Parish), to share stories and try to find some healing. One of them produced a flyer about our concert and they all decided to pile into their cars and find the church. They arrived a few minutes before we began and melted into the crowd. Hope. Healing. Tears. Laughter. I’ve never felt more humbled as a songwriter and an artist. I was reminded how important every word is. Every choice. Every melody. I know at every concert I do people have come in carrying the joys and defeats of their week. They have come to be challenged, encouraged, comforted. Artists don’t matter but Songs really do.
December 15th, 2005 at 9:54 pm
James, I miss you guys! Tell Shera I tried to call her earlier tonight, but it was busy… I bought 2 “After the Storm” CDs… I think they’ll be great encouragement to two friends of mine who are weathering their own storm… I’m so stoked you participated on this piece. VERY cool. What an opportunity. You guys comin’ east next week?
January 5th, 2012 at 12:02 am
Dare we hope that the Chicago area can be another display arena for this artwork? We still have “survivors-” in our township which includes the city of Skokie. Their museum is quite new, and tastefully designed by those “survivors-.” It would be a tribute to them and to the huge Polish population of the Chicago area – which still boasts the largest population of Poles outside of Warsaw.cheap diablo 3 gold