A posting in 010918 MMDigest said that we should use our various
instruments to play patriotic music.  I want to tell you about this
past weekend.  At the Fall Festival in Duluth, GA, I played my calliope
in the parade and then let it play for the rest of the afternoon and
Sunday.

During the parade I only played patriotic songs (from the keyboard) and
the response was unbelievable.  While playing "God Bless America",
"America the Beautiful", "What is America to Me", etc., I saw old men
try to get out of their wheelchairs, and when they couldn't, salute the
flags that were on my trailer.  The tears were flowing from the eyes of
all ages, even the teenagers and young adults.

I had a man about 65 come up to me later and ask if I was the person
playing the calliope.  When I said yes, he shook my hand and, with big
tears in his eyes, he said, "Thank you, We all needed that!"

All of it made me realize that the love of America is still there and
that when we need them, the young people will "Stand up next to us, and
defend us still today," as Lee Greenwood said in his song, "God Bless
the USA."

I consider this past weekend one of the most moving experiences I have
had in my 60 years.  On Friday, at a bank in Buford, GA, I played
during an American Red Cross blood drive, turning it into a fund
raiser, yielding approximately $500 for the Sept. 11 fund.

Maybe we can all do our part with the instruments we hold so dear.

Thank you,
Dean T. Smith