At some point in the easy commute from Cat Spring to home, the General told me to stop at Sonic and buy ice. She was sleepy and she was not going to drive. She knew the ice would keep me awake. When it comes to the General, I sometimes take seriously her wise words of counsel. Instead of Sonic, I stopped at Buc-ee’s. I figured that I could drink enough Mountain Dew to have a caffeine over-load. Surely, that would keep me awake. I just wished I like the taste of Mountain Dew.
After arriving at home and unloading the car, I headed toward my office. I really needed to craft a funeral message for a dear friend whose celebration of life service is later today. The General (in typical fashion) put in her two cents worth and suggested I put my feet up and rest for an hour. Maybe she had a point.
If I was going to do that, why not make it count? About a week and a half ago, I received the gift of “May It Last” from a second cousin. He ordered the video for me after he learned that I’m hooked on the Avett Brothers. By-the-way, it isn’t a bad addiction to have.
“May It Last” is an HBO documentary of the Avett Brother’s Band. The documentary is a testimony to the love relationship that the two brothers share. The unique thing about the band is that they only sing songs that they write. The songs they craft come from their life experiences. Perhaps part of their appeal is that their stories remind other people of their stories. Isn’t that the way the dynamic works? A person’s story has to be everyone’s story or it doesn’t last.
The documentary was released in 2016. It highlights the early years. The grand finale takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was a first for them! They had never played in a venue that large.
When I saw the band last summer at Red Rocks, there were 20,000 people present. Obviously, there appeal is contagious. It is real music. It is real life. It is faith based. Last year at the concert, I sat next to a family from North Carolina. They actually had purchased tickets to see the Avett Brothers for two concerts at Red Rocks a day apart. In talking to the lady, it was like they were best of friends. She talked about Scott and Seth like they were the brothers who grew up next door. She mentioned at some point that she had never met them in person, but her familiarity with them and their families seemed genuine and connected.
The documentary includes the addition of the other members of their band who play instruments and do a host of other things to orchestrate the tours and make it all work. In the process of living and working together, they’ve become like an extended family.
When the Bob Crawford, the base player’s three-year-old daughter was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, the support they were provided by members of the band during her initial 2 ½ week hospitalization was identical to what you’d expect from involved and loving family members. A member of the band was with the family around the clock for that first hospitalization.
The initial medical prognosis was without hope. The challenge was which voices do you listen to. Does a person’s faith make a difference in life and death situations? We've all been there. The members of the band opted to take the faith approach.
Seriously, tears streamed down my cheeks as I watched the documentary. It was touching and it was real. I actually was glad the General hadn’t joined me in watching the video. Initially, I was a little aggravated that she had no interest.
The General can be so hardheaded. Of course, she’d say the same is true for me. We both can own it, because it is true. Under the auspices of prophecy, I suspect when the General eventually sees the video she will become a fan. I’m not going to throw her under the bus because she doesn’t hang on every word I say or intuitively know that she needs to follow my lead. She charts her own course, just as I chart mine. We don’t have to agree on music and we don’t both have to choose to ride rag-top down. We are okay differing on those things.
Like my paternal grandfather often said: “People don’t have to agree with me if they don’t mind being wrong”. Did I mention, I really love that guy!
The Avett Brother’s album “True Sadness” is a snapshot in time. It is autobiographical and relates to the trauma of death, divorce and childhood illness. Sooner or later in every life, we all face that same phenomena. As an extended family, there are sad times and there are good times. The documentary highlights that even good things can come out of bad things. A person’s faith can redeem their circumstances.
I wasn’t particularly surprised to learn that the Avett brother’s grandfather was a preacher. The introduction to the documentary includes this quote: “We are at this moment where we have never been before, and before I finish saying it, we have passed it and will never be there again. – Rev. Clegg W. Avett (1914-1976).
In the event that you think I’m incapable of multi-tasking, it the middle of the video, I put the documentary on hold while I made a couple of notes of things I wanted to share at the celebration of life service this afternoon. Always the challenge is in the introduction. Once I get started, the words generally flow. The challenge is always the introduction. Once I had that nailed down, I gave myself permission to put my feet up and relax.
All My Best!
Don