Pink Moon (Part I) - The Song

I first heard the ballad, "Pink Moon", as a child.  Not having any idea who sang it or what it was about, it was more like a lullaby to me (my lullaby)...drifting off to sleep to the almost folk rhythms of "pink, pink, pink, pink...pink moon"; driving me through soft curves and quiet nights into all things magical and delightful - and pink.

You see, I grew up with my mother.  She would sit and play beautiful music with her own fingers on an old and out-of-tune piano; her strong voice belting out old hymns and maybe a random Barry Manilow or Carpenters tune.  But my exposure to the outside world of music and to the radio was limited.  Rock music was not allowed and there was certainly never a spontaneous explosion of dance for sure!  Not inside the home anyway.  Not in front of me.

My father, on the other hand, was a bit of a music buff - or better described, he was obsessed.  He appreciated every style and artist and era.  Coming by it naturally, his father sang with an amazing tenor voice in a gospel quartet that gained local popularity after recording their first (and only) single.  The last gift my dad gave his mother before passing was a more permanent CD of the one-hit-wonder converted from the worn and scratched 45 that she held so dear.  I heard it once.  I can still hear it if I close my eyes and listen close with my heart.

During biweekly visitations with my dad, he would often withdraw into his own homemade studio; mixing eight tracks and tapes long into the night.  He would strum along with his generic department store guitar and sing when the mood struck, sometimes teaching me a few note, but always letting me howl (off key) right along with him until I grew tired.  I would often fake getting sleepy so that he would pick me up and swirl me into a waltz or walk me to bed in a two-step.  Once there, he would quiet the music to something more soothing.  "Pink Moon" was my favorite.

I'm honestly not sure if that is the truth or fiction.  It is simply what I know in my head and how my memory serves.  As with many recollections of childhood and especially in regards to those we love and were estranged, fantasy or wishful thinking can sometimes replace reality.  I am OK with this one.  I had forgotten all about this particular story until a few years ago when Volkswagen used "Pink Moon" in one of their commercials.  Rather than fast forward through the DVR, I sat frozen in time as my mind flashed back to those precious moments - tears and longing streaming down my face.  

I hope you enjoy the new music on my page.  Thank you for taking this ride down memory lane with me.  I hope it makes you feel soft and magical and delightful - and pink.

(RE)Connecting the Dad Day Dots

I missed my dad today.

I had been looking forward to spending the first Father's Day with him since - well, since my childhood; during every other weekend visitations.  You see, we had only reconnected just four short months before his death last year.  He had not been a part of my life since before I was married.  He did not walk me, his only child, down the isle.  He will never get to see his one and only grandchild.

But this is a day to celebrate!  And I do not want to bring it down with sadness from days gone by.  I want to remember the good!

The good is that he loved me in the beginning and in the end.  The rest of time is just middle-stuff.  The good is that he told me that he loved me even as brain function stole away his ability to speak.  He said it through blue eyes that look like mine.  He said it through the squeeze of my hand; with his crooked little pinkie inside my hand having that same crooked little finger.

Little girls need their dads.  The woman that I have become loves the dad that the little girl had.  I  somehow found a man to marry that loves me in all the middle-stuff ways that a little girl needs to turn into a woman.  I can now pass that GOOD part of love down to a child, God willing someday.

Thanks, Dad.  I'm glad you are spending Father's Day in peace with YOUR dad AND your Heavenly Father.  Now that IS a reason to celebrate!