Ailantha
  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact

Songs Of Gratitude

11/28/2016

1 Comment

 
      I'll admit that this past Friday I missed out on the traditional Black Friday pastime of shopping 'til one drops, but only because I was saving that activity until Saturday when my daughter Theresa and her wife Callie came to town,  and then we did indeed shop until I almost dropped,
...and probably would have had we not stopped  for a meditation break.
Picture
     However on Friday night Tom and I carried out what we hope will be our Black Friday tradition from now on:  we headed out to the Old North Columbus area,
..to the historic Maynard Avenue United Methodist Church,
Picture
...for Columbus folk-singer Bill Cohen's Alternative-To-The-Black-Friday-Buying-Frenzy Thanksgiving Concert.
Picture
      Since he retired three years ago from an almost 40-year career as a National Public Radio reporter on Ohio Statehouse news, Bill Cohen has bloomed in his second career as a   folksinger,
...regaling us local folks with his beautiful tenor voice throughout the year in concerts that invariably morph into sing-alongs as we his fans join in the songs he and we love: the familiar and singable ballads, folk tunes and popular songs, especially from the 1960's.
Picture
       The cost of entrance to Bill Cohen's concerts is generally a donation at the door.  All of the money raised is then donated to a charitable cause such as the Ohio Food Bank or, in the case of  the  Thanksgiving concert, to fund Bill's wife Randi's volunteer work in the Dominican Republic, 
Picture
...where she donates her services as a translator for the doctors and nurses with the International Medical Alliance of Tennessee on their medical trips to that country.
     Though Bill performs at various locations around town, the venue for the Thanksgiving Concert is  an especially beautiful and intimate one:
 the church sanctuary,
Picture
Picture
...all decked out for Christmas.
Picture
Picture
       Though the theme of this concert was "to remind us of all the gifts we have:  nature, friends, freedom, families, music, art, our miraculous bodies and emotions",  I believe that night what we were all most grateful for was the opportunity to listen to and sing along with Bill,
...as he accompanied himself sometimes on guitar,
Picture
Picture
...sometimes on piano, and sometimes accompanied by drummer David Maywhoor.
     Bill started the concert with a zippy sing-along version of "Zippity Doo-Dah", which is his own daily morning affirmation of gratitude for waking up to another day of life.  
     For an hour and a half we listened to and sang along  with  such songs as "Thank You For Being A Friend,  "What A Wonderful World",  "Sunshine", "Oh, What A Beautiful Morning",  "Starry Starry NIghts",  "America The Beautiful", "We Shall Overcome",  and  a dozen others, including two  heart-tugging  songs of love and longing, "My Cup Runneth Over With Love" and an old World War II song about loved ones being far apart  called "I'll Be Seeing You".
      In case anyone would like to make the acquaintance or re-acquaintance of these two very beautiful songs here are the youtube links:

      "My Cup Runneth Over With Love":    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rw2_VrjwctA

       "I'll Be Seeing You" :    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nvq4OnhMEO4

       At the end of the concert Bill Cohen sent us off with the reminder to "savor every little thing that's good in life".  
       I was thankful for that reminder.

1 Comment
celeb networth link
2/24/2021 12:45:48 am

Thank you for the nice article.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Picture
    "Equal And Opposite Reactions"
     by Patti Liszkay
    Buy it on Amazon:

    http://amzn.to/2xvcgRa
    Picture
    ​"Hail Mary"
    by Patti Liszkay
    Buy it on Amazon:

    https://www.amzn.com/1684334888
    Picture
    "Tropical Depression" 
    by Patti Liszkay
    ​Buy it on Amazon:   
    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BTPN7NYY

    Archives

    June 2025
    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013

    RSS Feed

    I am a traveler just visiting this planet and reporting various and sundry observations,
    hopefully of interest to my fellow travelers.

    Categories

    All


























































































  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact