Blood Sweat & Tears has been making music for over 40 years. As a group they have had a lot of firsts and have left a mark on history and the music world. But, when I think of Blood Sweat & Tears I really don't think about mixing rock and jazz music. Instead, I think about the connotation. In fact, I thought about this phrase a lot this last weekend. A few days ago I went to Southern Indiana. The point of my trip was to paint the fence around the family cemetery.
It has been 19 years since the fence at Mt. Gilead was last painted. At the time I was only 10. I remember very little from that day, but July 24th is a day I probably won't soon forget. I am older and much wiser now--I realize the significance of what I was doing.
About 20 people showed up throughout the day to help paint the fence, and now it looks almost brand new (even if it is 60 or 70 years old). It wasn't just that the fence needed painted and got painted, it is about what that time represents. For me, knowing who you are and knowing where you are from is so important. To know who you are means to respect where you came from. Painting this fence meant respecting my history, my past, my family. It showed that these people are special to me and are part of who I am. It wasn't just to make the cemetery look better, it was about my indebtedness to the family that raised me to be who I am. It was about honoring them.
I was by decades younger than anyone else there. In fact, the average age was probably over 60. But, everyone worked with the hearts of teenagers. There was tons of teasing--I of course picked the hottest day of the year to have 60 some odd year olds paint a fence so I didn't get to live that down. There was lots of eating--thank heavens for Aunt Ruth Ann'S homemade yeast rolls. There was lots of paint--we all looked like we had gotten in a fight with the Tin Man. And, there was lots of reminiscing. I was told at least a dozen times that I look just like my mother when she was younger. And of course there was the typical argument about who got their attitude from whom--to be related to us it is almost a requirement to have a very distinctive attitude. There were words of thanks and appreciation for the willingness to be there. And in those words were tears--tears for the memories, tears for the future, tears for the past.
It was hot that day, I was up hours earlier than usual, it was hard messy work, but it meant the world to me to be there. So for me, what you get when you mix together family, the hottest day of the year, and lots of talking about the olden days? A little Blood Sweat & Tears. This isn't history in the making--it is history in the working.
