Peter Yarrow, of Peter, Paul & Mary fame, is currently battling cancer and nearing the end of his days. His daughter, Bethany, has put together a “Peter Yarrow Living Tribute” page online at https://www.peteryarrow.net. (Contributions to this page can be submitted at https://tinyurl.com/y26rfxv2.) Here is the message I sent to Peter yesterday.

Dear Peter –

We have met on two occasions, but you have meant so much more to me than a couple of brief encounters. Here are just a few thoughts before you go… 

In the early morning hours of December 18, 1969, as I was experiencing a relationship trauma, I needed an escape from my current situation, and as I got into my car, the radio came on to the gentle, unmistakable opening chords of “Leaving on a Jet Plane” – “All my bags are packed…” In the ten thousand times I’ve heard that song since, I’ve always been reminded of the strains of Peter, Paul & Mary during that cold winter morning in northern Wisconsin. And how meaningful those John Denver lyrics were for me at that point.

In November of 1988, when I was on a business trip, I went into an art shop in Lexington, Kentucky, and found a poster with a black & white 1964 photo, by John C Desaint, of John, Paul, George & Ringo; Peter, Paul & Mary; and Ed Sullivan (see below). I just had to have it. I gently carried this incredible find back home to Oregon, had the print framed, and it’s been on display in every place I’ve call home since. You were my favorite artists – the Beatles providing the pop, and PP&M the folk - for the soundtrack to my high school and college years.

On February 9, 1991, I attended a Peter, Paul & Mary concert (the only time I saw you together) at the Indiana University Auditorium in Bloomington. This was at the beginning of the first Gulf War. You, personally, invited any of us in attendance to get together with you after the concert to talk about current events, and I was in that very small group who was there. (Of the 3,200 at the concert, only about 20 of us hung around to talk with you.) I’m sure you don’t remember me from this event, but I remember that evening very clearly. Among the topics were the morality of that specific conflict. And all war. You were so very gentle, kind, informed and articulate. Just as I had imagined you.

On May 21, 2019, I was the event photographer at Linda Carroll’s house when you performed as a benefit for your new non-profit. Before dinner, you graciously posed with each of the attendees so that they could have a remembrance of that night. You worked with me via mail and email to personally sign all the prints so that I could then distribute them. You were really great to work with, and even signed multiple prints for me and my date, Wendy. A signed 8x10 hangs in my living room right now; and it always will. I have since been able to brag that Peter Yarrow’s contact info is in my phone.

Wendy and I sat in the front row of the folks gathered in Linda and Tim’s living room that night. A special and enduring memory of the occasion happened when you approached Wendy, sitting at the end of the row, and sang most of one verse of “Puff, the Magic Dragon” directly to her.

Peter, you have meant so much to so many. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for living the life you have. I’m glad our paths crossed.

Blessings…

-----

Soundtrack Suggestion

Where have all the flowers gone?
Long time passing
Where have all the flowers gone?
Long time ago
Where have all the flowers gone?
Young girls have picked them, every one
Oh, when will they ever learn?
Oh, when will they ever learn? 

(“Where Have All the Flowers Gone” – Pete Seeger)

The Beatles; Peter, Paul & Mary; Ed Sullivan - by John C Desaint (1964)

I was roaming around Saturday Market a couple days ago when the boldly-colored sign of an empanada stand caught my eye. After pointing my camera and taking a shot, I was immediately waved off by the owner who was upset that I had not first asked permission. I approached him to have a conversation and, after obligingly deleting the photo, I was informed that just that morning some of the vendors had been advised that there were reports of a "creepy old man” taking photos of women and children at the Market.

Without necessarily trying to defend that person’s behavior (whoever he was), I did inform Michael, the empanada guy, that, in this country, people who are out in public are “fair game” (so to speak) and, in most cases, should not have any expectation of privacy; photographers are not obligated to seek permission, however gentlemanly (and ethically-sound) that behavior may be. As long as the photo is not used commercially, the picture is the property of the photographer to do with it as he/she will. (I actually do carry with me photo-release forms in the off chance that I may want to use a picture for commercial use. See "Photography and the Law" for more info.)

I let him know that it was the striking colors of his sign that attracted me and the reason I took the photo in the first place. It turned out to be a very cordial conversation during which, interestingly, he offered me a free empanada! After our chat ended, and strolling around the Market for a bit longer, I returned to let Michael know that my take-away for the day was that at least one Market vendor had initially pegged me for a “creepy old guy.” Ugh. He then allowed me to take this photo. Thank you, Michael.

Soundtrack Suggestion

I got a Nikon camera
I love to take a photograph
So mama don't take my Kodachrome away

(“Kodachrome” — Paul Simon)

I am now in my 77th year and quite frequently, in this mostly-retired life I’m living, I wonder how to make the most meaning of my remaining days. I say “mostly retired” because back in 2019, after five years with no earned income, I decided to seek part-time work that would supplement my various and sundry (i.e., relatively-modest) retirement-income streams. So, in the last five years, and because I have a wide range of skills, I have worked three successive, different jobs on our local community college campus. It has been a valuable experience, so far, and keeps both my mind and body active. 

Retirement, though, is nothing like I imagined – that is, if I thought about it much  at all. I never really did have a coherent “retirement strategy,” as we are encouraged to do. Rather, my approach seemed to be: to work as long as I can and then see where I was in “old age.” You would be right in concluding that this is not really the most prudent game plan. And, as it turned out, I spent a considerable portion of my life pursuing multiple academic degrees, which significantly cut into my ability to put away any kind of really-comfortable, old-age nest egg. (Student loans played a big part in that, I have to admit; I was paying them off until age 66. It seems I missed the whole “forgiveness” scenario by about three decades.)

The bottom line here is: I have found this time of life to be quite problematic. Despite the fact that I am working part time, getting up in the morning and finding purpose has been a real issue. Questions such as: what am I doing with my life? and what have I done with my life” keep seeping into my consciousness. I keep wondering about the value I have added to the universe during my younger years, and I am especially questioning the value of my life now. As always, I am asking: what’s it all about?

Most people would say: love. But it seems that has mostly passed me by this time around.

Soundtrack Suggestion

What’s it all about Alfie
Is it just for the moment we live

I believe in love, Alfie
Without true love we just exist, Alfie
Until you find the love you’ve missed
You’re nothing, Alfie

(“Alfie” – Burt Bacharach)

It would seem I’m in love again. Well, sorta, anyway. No, I don’t have another significant-other in my life. I don’t know if that will ever happen again. As it turns out, I have recently become rather taken with a young female pop star.

Nope, it’s not Billie Eilish. And I said pop star, so no, it’s not Caitlin Clark either. But both of those would be rather good guesses, as I have, of late, become fans of both.

Perhaps you’ve heard of my new interest: Taylor Swift. Ring a bell? Anybody? Well, I suspect you have, so here’s a little bit of the story.

It wasn’t more that maybe four or five months ago that I mentioned to a friend that this Taylor Swift person sure is in the news a lot these days. I had become more and more aware of her with the furor over The Eras Tour. And of course, this was during the NFL season, so Ms. Swift’s involvement with Kansas City Chiefs’ Travis Kelce was generating quite the buzz. Still, I confessed, despite the apparent fame and fortune of this very popular musician, I could not name even one song of hers. Well, my friend is a grandmother of two pre-adolescent girls so is slightly more contemporary-pop-culture aware than I am in this regard; she indicated that she knew one song: “Shake it Off.” So, for the first time, I watched the music video of that song, and said, “yeah, I guess that’s rather cute.” (It was very well produced, I do admit.)

And then, I went on about my life.

Subsequently, of course, there was all the news about Kansas City getting into the Super Bowl and would Taylor Swift be able to make it to the game, given that she was performing a concert in Japan the night before? Such controversy: holy crap! Well, of course, you probably know that not only did she make it to the game (the perks of having a private jet!), but the Chiefs beat the 49ers in overtime – and the game was watched by an increasingly large female TV audience hoping to catch a glimpse of Taylor in her private stadium suite.

Still, I was amused, but rather unmoved.

But then, things took a turn. At some point a few days ago, someone (sorry, I don’t recall who) on Facebook posted a link to a NPR Tiny Desk Concert. And I watched. This session was recorded over four years ago, in October 2019: showcasing a slightly-younger Taylor (can I now call you by your first name?), without the frills of a music video or the glitter while playing to an arena of tens-of-thousands. She played four tunes as, she said, “how the songs sounded when I first wrote them” (i.e, acoustic versions, two on guitar, two on piano). I had never heard these tunes before, of course, though it now seems obvious, given some further research, that most of the rest of the civilized world has. In the comments section, a 70-year-old guy from Oregon (not me) wrote, “I now see the appeal, the truly evident talent and most of all… the genuineness of her personality, and the deservedness of the accolades she has garnered.” 

What especially caught my attention was the final song she performed, entitled, “All Too Well.” Right away, it became obvious that this was what could be definitively called a “breakup song.” Arggghhhhh! It totally socked me in the gut. And I immediately agreed with the person in the comments section, as I said to myself, “ah, now I get it.” She is a truly engaging as a person and writes lyrics that speak deeply to the human experience. No wonder she has the immense following she enjoys.

I love you, Taylor. (Call me.)

(And I still cannot name a single Beyoncé song. Sorry ‘bout that.)

Here is today’s Soundtrack Suggestion:

Teller was not so much bereft as he was stunned; although, he admitted, this was accompanied by a healthy dose of relief. He was aware that he should be grieving, as would be normal under such circumstances. Perhaps the immense sense of fatigue that he was feeling, down to the core of his being, was a symptom of his sadness.

The relationship that he had been involved in for five years was now officially over. Given that he had invested so much of his life in this one person, it qualified as one of the major liaisons of his life. But now, it was, finally: kaput.

Not that this should be a big surprise. In fact, anyone with a lick of sense would have predicted this outcome for a coupling with such a turbulent and chaotic dynamic. The on-again/off-again nature had been truly maddening. 

Teller and Gwendolyn had met online and had their first date on her 65th birthday in 2019. He was 71 at the time and hoping to meet his last love. However, despite their mutual attraction, from very early on differences over fundamental values were evident.

Consequently, there were oh many instances of painful conflict along the way. And it did not end well, with Gwen sending a final, distancing text: “… and please do not contact me again.”

Yes, Teller was stunned. And yet, bound to honor Gwendolyn’s wish.

Adieu: perhaps to his last love.

Soundtrack Suggestion

And I know it’s long gone
and that magic’s not here no more

And I might be okay
but I'm not fine at all

(“All Too Well” - Taylor Swift)