Twelve years ago, I had never bellied up to a microphone with guitar in hand. I was 45 years old when I first muddled my way through John Prine's Let's Talk Dirty in Hawaiian and The Beatles' Blackbird at an open mic hosted by Jason Hanks in Baton Rouge, LA. You could have cut the tension with a knife!!! Everybody knew I was a first-timer and they really wanted me not to suck! (Which, admittedly, I kinda did...) When I struck the final chord, the applause was DEAFENING, and I could see everyone who had held their breath for me suddenly get color back in their cheeks.
See, it was my dream to play music out in the world, after coming out of cancer treatment the previous month. Twelve years later, I make my living as a musician. I do music therapy with Alzheimer's patients and seniors with dementia; I perform as a children's musician; I am a songwriter; I am a jazz guitarist; I am drawn to any stringed instrument, and continue to try out new ones. But it all started because a few people encouraged me to go for my dream*...
I have a new dream, y'all, as of mid 2014. I want to travel throughout the United States and play songs I've written at open mics and gigs in every single state of the union. I live in Louisiana, so I can check that one off. I've played a bunch in Texas, and once in Indiana. About 10 years ago, I got to play in Potlach, Idaho with my first duo partner. I'm heading east this next trip. Savannah, Georgia, here I come!!! Because of the kindness of 2 wonderful friends, I have a chance to play twice this coming week in their new community! And mid-February will find me in Nashville, TN! I cannot believe it! Y'all, I'm 57 and I'm living my dream. Color me grateful and excited and at times a bit intimidated...but I've got a special mission in my life and it feels right!
I wrote a song called Wake Up and Dream. I am planning something really special with this tune, and I'll share more in the next WAKE UP AND DREAM installment. I wonder if anybody out there is chasing a dream. I would love to hear about it...
Until next blog post, peace and love to you...
dorothy
* No way I can thank everybody who encouraged me, but here are a few who have helped me in my travels: Catrina Rogers, Terri Hendrix, Lloyd Maines, my Life's a Song Friends, Beth Harvey, Mike and Debi Chambers, Karen Kelley, Daniel Lee, Renea Hanna, Sally Morgan...and so many many more. Another special thank you to my buddy and long-time duo partner, Mike Whitney, who did quite a few Louisiana 'road-trip' gigs with me! Thank y'all...
Friday, January 30, 2015
Sunday, January 25, 2015
53 YEARS OF MARRIAGE...IS IT A THING OF THE PAST?
He was a big man on campus...a tall, handsome north Louisiana Baptist, studying Agriculture at Louisiana State University in the late '30s and early '40s. She was a beautiful but very shy south Louisiana Catholic, studying Home Economics at the same university, during the same time period. The stories each would recount of their first meeting were vastly different!
My dad, Doyle Chambers, was one of the few guys on campus at the time who had a car, and that made him the perfect double-date candidate for those who didn't have wheels. My dad's friend (I'll call him Joe) decided that my dad needed to get a date so they could 'double' and dad would drive. Doyle agreed, as long as he got a date with 'that girl over there', who was friends with Joe's girlfriend. Doyle had had his eyes on her for the longest time, and knew that she would be the woman for him. He was instantly smitten!
My mom, Luella Dugas, was so shy and unsure of herself, that when Joe's girlfriend tried to fix her up with Doyle, she said, "I'm sure it's not ME that he wants to go out with. I bet he wanted to take my roommate out." But no, Doyle knew who he wanted to date, and it was Luella. My mother would later tell me, "Within 5 minutes on our first date, I KNEW that this was one guy I would NEVER go out with again. He was a north Louisiana Baptist (she was a south Louisiana Catholic...her mom would have NEVER permitted that match!!!!!), he smoked, and he drank. That was it...he was not a candidate for her affections...
They were married on January 30, 1943, and were together until Luella's death on May 26, 1996. They survived the hard WWII years; brought 3 children into the world; weathered childhood polio scares and inflamed tonsils and Oklahoma tornadoes and Louisiana hurricanes. Each battled cancer several times over the years, and even painfully witnessed two of their own children have their own cancer journeys. Life was certainly not a bed of roses...but there was never a doubt that they would get through every twist and turn, TOGETHER.
My Dad passed away in September 2005. This Friday I will celebrate what would have been their 72nd wedding anniversary. A remarkable feat! Never a bed of roses, but a journey they walked TOGETHER. For a lifetime. Please watch the song I wrote to celebrate their love.
My dad, Doyle Chambers, was one of the few guys on campus at the time who had a car, and that made him the perfect double-date candidate for those who didn't have wheels. My dad's friend (I'll call him Joe) decided that my dad needed to get a date so they could 'double' and dad would drive. Doyle agreed, as long as he got a date with 'that girl over there', who was friends with Joe's girlfriend. Doyle had had his eyes on her for the longest time, and knew that she would be the woman for him. He was instantly smitten!
My mom, Luella Dugas, was so shy and unsure of herself, that when Joe's girlfriend tried to fix her up with Doyle, she said, "I'm sure it's not ME that he wants to go out with. I bet he wanted to take my roommate out." But no, Doyle knew who he wanted to date, and it was Luella. My mother would later tell me, "Within 5 minutes on our first date, I KNEW that this was one guy I would NEVER go out with again. He was a north Louisiana Baptist (she was a south Louisiana Catholic...her mom would have NEVER permitted that match!!!!!), he smoked, and he drank. That was it...he was not a candidate for her affections...
They were married on January 30, 1943, and were together until Luella's death on May 26, 1996. They survived the hard WWII years; brought 3 children into the world; weathered childhood polio scares and inflamed tonsils and Oklahoma tornadoes and Louisiana hurricanes. Each battled cancer several times over the years, and even painfully witnessed two of their own children have their own cancer journeys. Life was certainly not a bed of roses...but there was never a doubt that they would get through every twist and turn, TOGETHER.
My Dad passed away in September 2005. This Friday I will celebrate what would have been their 72nd wedding anniversary. A remarkable feat! Never a bed of roses, but a journey they walked TOGETHER. For a lifetime. Please watch the song I wrote to celebrate their love.
I'm curious. Do you think that 53 years of marriage is a thing of the past? I don't. Instead of letting hardship destroy them, it brought them closer together. That's the key, I believe. They truly married for a lifetime. As always, thank you for reading...
until next blog post, peace and love to you
dorothy
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