Last night, I did a pickup gig with two Katrina refugees. Dale (guitar) and Anthony (drums) left New Orleans on Sunday, stuffing everything they could into a pickup truck and heading north. Anthony's lady lives in my town and they came here to wait out the storm. When they realized they wouldn't be able to go back for some time, and had lost most of their gigs, they began to scrabble for work.
I got a call from them Thursday night. I almost didn't do the gig, because it was a short notice thing, and only paid tips. (It's been a long time since I worked for tips alone.) But when Dale mentioned New Orleans and what had happened to the two of them, I decided to do it just to help them out. And I'm so glad I did.
What impressed me most was the fact that, instead of sitting around bemoaning their fate, they were doing their best to rise above the tragedy and move on with their lives. Anthony had to spend his last money to buy another drum set (his current set wouldn't fit in the truck if they were to bring anything else). No complaints...just the comment that he was grateful to be able to play and make some money. They both have many family members and friends they haven't been able to contact since the hurricane. Again, no complaints...just prayers for the missing.
I was also very glad to see the outpouring of support from the audience. Virtually everyone in the club put money in the tip bucket. At the end of the night there were several fives, tens, even twenties. I also saw many people drop wads of singles. The bar owners, who were under NO obligation to pay anything, contributed $100. I spoke with several patrons throughout the night who were as impressed as I was with Dale and Anthony for digging in their heels and refusing to give up. And I think the attitude these two displayed had a lot to do with the size and amount of the tips received.
More than anything, last night was an object lesson in overcoming tragedy. It reminded me of things my father taught me over the years. Sitting around and crying about the challenges in one's life does no good. Of course, watching your home be covered by flood waters, knowing your life has literally sunk into the ocean, is going to hurt. It's extremely difficult to deal with, to say the least. But giving up isn't dealing with it. Getting back on your feet and moving forward is. Putting aside your troubles and doing what you can - and doing it to the best of your ability - is dealing with life's tragedies. And that's what Dale and Anthony did last night.
To quote my own poem, which I wrote to honor my father and his lessons:
He said, Life is like that son, you go with the flow
You do what you do, you know what you know
Life is today, just here and now
Life is like that sometimes, life is like that somehow
So, the next time life hands you a challenge, I hope you'll remember this little story about Dale and Anthony. I know I will. I can't tell you how happy I am to have met them.
I got a call from them Thursday night. I almost didn't do the gig, because it was a short notice thing, and only paid tips. (It's been a long time since I worked for tips alone.) But when Dale mentioned New Orleans and what had happened to the two of them, I decided to do it just to help them out. And I'm so glad I did.
What impressed me most was the fact that, instead of sitting around bemoaning their fate, they were doing their best to rise above the tragedy and move on with their lives. Anthony had to spend his last money to buy another drum set (his current set wouldn't fit in the truck if they were to bring anything else). No complaints...just the comment that he was grateful to be able to play and make some money. They both have many family members and friends they haven't been able to contact since the hurricane. Again, no complaints...just prayers for the missing.
I was also very glad to see the outpouring of support from the audience. Virtually everyone in the club put money in the tip bucket. At the end of the night there were several fives, tens, even twenties. I also saw many people drop wads of singles. The bar owners, who were under NO obligation to pay anything, contributed $100. I spoke with several patrons throughout the night who were as impressed as I was with Dale and Anthony for digging in their heels and refusing to give up. And I think the attitude these two displayed had a lot to do with the size and amount of the tips received.
More than anything, last night was an object lesson in overcoming tragedy. It reminded me of things my father taught me over the years. Sitting around and crying about the challenges in one's life does no good. Of course, watching your home be covered by flood waters, knowing your life has literally sunk into the ocean, is going to hurt. It's extremely difficult to deal with, to say the least. But giving up isn't dealing with it. Getting back on your feet and moving forward is. Putting aside your troubles and doing what you can - and doing it to the best of your ability - is dealing with life's tragedies. And that's what Dale and Anthony did last night.
To quote my own poem, which I wrote to honor my father and his lessons:
He said, Life is like that son, you go with the flow
You do what you do, you know what you know
Life is today, just here and now
Life is like that sometimes, life is like that somehow
So, the next time life hands you a challenge, I hope you'll remember this little story about Dale and Anthony. I know I will. I can't tell you how happy I am to have met them.
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