Making it personal

Report from Naples, FL: in two hours this sea of chairs will be a sea of people. Some will be friends, some will be strangers. By the end of our concert, we hope they will all be friends. I am still surprised that in an hour of telling stories and playing songs for people, people will come to the table and buy CDs, tell me a story about their grandfather, and even invite us to stay with them the next time we are in town. We've been coming to Naples for six years and every visit has its own shape and character. Sometimes, a husband or wife will come to the table alone and I will learn that one of our fans who I've hugged and laughed with has gone on up to the picnic on the sky. It's a very personal business, what we do and how we do it. I once talked with a record executive and fellow songwriter who said that Billy and I make a point of making it personal. And he was right. What matters most to me is whether we brought joy today, whether someone may have cried, whether they learned something new, did they have a change of heart, and did they feel they were celebrated by being here and being part of this temporary group of 200 people who will never all be in the same room at the same time with us again? I am so very grateful that this is my work and that you, the libraries, the folk clubs, the cafes, the volunteers, our families, the truck stops, and the mystery of life are with us. Thank you!