Right here, before the new year begins, is a good time to affirm that old truths never die. Before I leave his year, I want to look at the gifts it gave me.
In 2002 I wrote about “pockets of the heart.” I closed the column with these words: “Here’s the good news. The heart never runs out of pockets. There’s always a place to tuck something or someone special. Never let a day pass when you don’t think, ‘I may find someone or feel something today worth sticking in one of my heart pockets. I am going to be very aware. For once something is placed there, it will be mine forever.’ “
For winning the Freedoms Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award, I must tuck Betty Parker in one of the pockets of my heart. She lives her life thinking of others. She gathered together all the testimonials for me from former Mayor Gene Roberts and many more. How many people do you know who would take so much time to see that you were honored?
It’s not that I won. Awards have never paddled my boat. I care more about friends, songs, guitars, birds, writing, walks by the river and things like that. It’s just that Betty took so much of her precious time to see that I was honored.
Speaking of Gene Roberts, it will probably embarrass “Cuz,” but I must put him into one of the pockets of my heart. When Fortwood honored him for his years of faithful service to the mentally ill, I wrote him a song, “From Onion Bottom to the Top.” We always laughed that both of us came from humble beginnings, he from Onion Bottom and I from Watering Trough.
It’s funny how politics can close off your vision. All the years we served together, we were not close. But with our staffs, I think we made a good solid team for riverfront development and jobs. But once you get out of the trench, you look at people with better eyes. The more I have looked at Gene, the better he looks.
Gene Roberts was never involved in anything with the slightest hint of scandal. He was always friendly and fair. He was loyal to his friends. He and I had a mutual friend, and I saw how far he would go to reach a friend with a deep, pervasive personal problem.
I have added Gene to my gratitude prayer list — people you are not just asking the Lord to bless and help but worthy souls you are thanking God for bringing into your life.
I am tucking the Golden Gourds into one of my heart pockets. The Golden Gourds are Al Harvey, Doc Findley, Sparky Brown, Bob McGee and the late Rusty Bridges, who checked out on us this year. When we all reached 50, we decided to call ourselves the Golden Gourds.
We get together irregularly when the group consciousness starts calling out for fellowship and extreme laughter. I am not being dramatic when I say the next day after a Golden Gourds session, my sides are always sore. We must have some people of unrestrained glee in our lives.
As we leave 2010, who are you tucking away in the pockets of your heart?
E-mail Dalton Roberts at DownhomeP@aol.com.