My high school classmates and I received a dose of reality this week with word that two of our SHS Class of 1965 friends had passed away within seven days of each other.
Russ Green - RIP
Ted Strohmaier - RIP
Both good men and friends.
We have now lost close to 40 members of our graduating class, which at the time, with 194 members, broke a record at Sandpoint High as the largest ever.
Losing two friends/classmates in a week has profound impact.
We are mortal. We shall die.
I often joke that it's important for me to hang in there because someone has to make the class announcements.
If I'm able to do that, I can be assured that nobody's gonna announce my passing.
To say there have been a few sobering thoughts about what's remaining of life would be an understatement. I also have a feeling that I'm not alone among our group in assessing our remaining days here on earth.
On another subject, yesterday I met a lady I've met once before in quick passing. With this meeting, we had more time to talk and the opportunity to get know each other a little better.
This lady sings Irish tunes and folk songs. At my request, she even sang a few lyrics from one of her favorite Irish songs.
In our conversation, we talked about one of my favorite singers ever, Joan Baez, whom I was fortunate to see live in Boise several years ago.
We also discussed the upcoming Ken Burns documentaries on the history of country music. The series, featuring two-hour segments begins Sunday on PBS.
That conversation touched on some other of our favorite female country artists----Alison Kraus, Nancy Griffith, Kathy Mattea, Emmylou Harris, to name a few.
And, of course, we talked about the great Dolly Parton whose ongoing attempts to part company with Porter Wagoner as featured singer on his show led to her writing the touching tune "I'll Always Love You."
As we were saying good bye, my new friend Jennifer told me to check out Joan Baez' acceptance speech at the 2017 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction program.
So, I did.
Her speech resonated with me for many reasons other than the fact that I have always thought she had one of the most hauntingly beautiful voices I've ever heard.
It resonated because she was a singer of our time, and, almost always, the lyrics of her songs reflected much of what I felt in my heart.
She may have been a bit extreme in her views during some of those times, but that voice always softened the message and always made me think.
I don't necessarily always agree with what I hear in a song, but when it's so beautifully and artfully performed, my emotions can go off the scale.
Joan Baez, with the gift of her voice, is truly a master at arousing deep and empathetic emotions.
All that said, I decided this morning that I needed a Joan Baez fix, so I went to YouTube and found the video below.
It seemed so appropriate for this week of the loss of our classmates.
It's been a week filled with so many thoughts of our past, of where we've been, where we've come and where we are in life and that with every passing day, this life is more precious than ever.
I found "Forever Young" inspiring this morning because it seems like a wise and inspiring mantra for living our the rest of our days: forever young.
Our bodies might not be forever young. I certainly know that for a fact, but as long as our minds are still working, Joan's lyrics should resonate and inspire us on how to live each day.
I don't know if anything I've said this morning makes any sense, but I do know that, for me, the beautiful song with the beautiful voice in the video below arouses deep emotions.
Enjoy and reflect and do whatever you can to stay "forever young."
Happy Friday.
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