by Melody

Today, I rummaged through all of my music and songbooks, searching for one particular song which I needed to play on my guitar and sing. This song had to be found, no doubt about it. I went through a whole bunch of papers, even went through some boxes in the garage

“What are you doing, Mommy?” asked Megan.

“I’m looking for a song - I have to play it for George, I just have to.” I rummaged through another box throwing papers and books on the floor.

“George?”

“Here, let me show you!” I ran into the living room where N Sync or Backstreet Boys or one of those groups blasted on the stereo. “I hope you don’t mind, but I’ve got to take this music out and put in something different.”

I grabbed the Beatles Abbey Road CD and stuck it into the stereo, trying to figure out how to choose a particular track. “Put Track 7 on, Megan.”

Megan expertly switched the stereo to Track 7, and the song I’d been searching for all day began to play - “Here comes the Sun” written by George Harrison.

“Look Megan,” I showed her the Abbey Road CD. Megan nodded. Yes, she knew the Beatles well. “See, this is George Harrison - one of the Beatles. He left us last night. Now, only Ringo and Paul are left.”

Just as I said that, Jeremy walked through the door. “What? George Harrison from the Beatles? No way!!” He looked really surprised and bummed out.

“Yes, it’s true,” I sad sadly, trying to hold back tears. “It’s the end of an era. Two Beatles are gone.”

“Oh Mommy! I’m sorry!” Megan hugged me. “Don’t worry! He’ll have Grandma to keep him company!”

Yes, and John, I thought. They’ll play music together, along with Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, and Jerry Garcia. Janis Joplin will sing the blues¼

Until I turned on the radio this morning, I hadn’t heard that something very sad had happened. George Harrison passed away last night at his friend’s home in LA. People from all over are gathering at Strawberry Fields in Central Park.

“Oh no!” I said. “This is terrible!” I longed to be in New York right there at Strawberry Fields in Central Park. I needed to be there.

George Harrison met John Lennon and Paul McCartney when they were all around 13 years old, and that George, the most spiritual and quiet of the Beatles, would teach John Lennon how to play the guitar?

I found myself remembering the first time I heard the Beatles play - and my Mother. It was 1963 in San Francisco, and I was six years old. I remember my Mom getting all excited about the Ed Sullivan Show - something about the Beatles? All of us kids, me, my little brother Michael and little sister Jennifer, sat in our jammies in the wood paneled den of the old Victorian railroad flat we lived in, watching the big screen black and white TV and waiting.

“Kids, what you’re going to see is history!” said my Mom excitedly, “Nothing will ever be the same after tonight!”

And, it never was the same again.

For that night the Beatles arrived right there in our den on Second Avenue in San Francisco - four guys with weird bowl hair cuts (at least that’s what they looked like to us) played music that would change the world!

As they started to play, my mother, beautiful and so young looking and dramatic, like an overgrown kid, gasped and yelled and clapped. “Oh, look kids!!!! It’s THEM!!!! IT’S THE BEATLES!!!!! AAAAHHHH!!!!

They had arrived.

I was fascinated, and found myself tapping and swaying to the music right along with my Mom, getting caught up in the spell of the Beatles, John, Paul, George and Ringo. And before it was over, my mother and I held each other and swayed to the music, singing, practically yelling, “She loves you, yeah, yeah, yeah!!!” over and over again while my brother and sister stared at us, their mouths wide open in wonder.

I don’t remember having anything in common with my Mother until that night. We were hooked. By the time I was seven, I knew every Beatles song by heart. We screamed whenever the Beatles showed up on TV. We screamed when the Beatles were mentioned on the radio. We sang along with all the Beatles songs and listened to Beatles records over and over again. We woke up with the Beatles and slept with the Beatles.

George, our guitars gently weep for you, but we’re happy that you are free at last. It’s just that, you see, we weep because we’ll miss you so much. Thank you for everything. We are forever touched by you and your songs, such as “Here Comes the Sun” “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” and “Something” to name a few.

So, George, this is for you: Here comes the sun, do n’ doo doo

Always,

Melody
New email address: melodywrites@comcast.net
http://www.deadjournal.com/users/melodywrites/