Something Very Beautiful, Indeed...

Awhile back, I promised to tell why "Something Beautiful" has recently earned a special place in my heart, and I think it's time to make good on that promise. A dear friend, who I only knew as Wolf Whitewater on Facebook, quite suddenly passed away on January 29 of this year. It was completely unexpected and extremely heart-wrenching. Both I and my fellow admin, Krista, had been particularly close to her, and found the loss almost more than we could bear. I can't speak exactly for Krista, since she is physically so many miles away, but the first few days were full of a wild woe for me. I barely slept and didn't eat at all the first day. As you might know, the album "Something Beautiful" was written after several of the band members' friends died in a short period. It was written out of grief, to reassure themselves that there was still some light ahead. And nowhere do you see that more than in the title track. Krista and I found that "Something Beautiful" helped us grieve for Wolf (her given name was Jennifer, but I still think of her as Wolf), and indeed still helps us. That brings us to the March 12 show in Seattle. I determined to ask Alan to sing "Something Beautiful" in Wolf's memory. I managed to get a message to the band (that in itself is a story--perhaps Part II?), saying how Wolf had been inspired by Alan to sing, play mandolin and guitar and was about to learn bodhran, like Sean, but passed before it arrived in the mail. She never set eyes on it. (This is all true, by the way. She saw the way Alan delighted in the music and wanted that same fierce joy for herself.) I asked if they would perform "Something Beautiful" in her memory--that it would mean a lot if they did, and signed it. I thought if they did do it--IF--Alan would simply say "By request". Instead he said, "This song is for Sara, and for some of us who can't be here tonight." Another friend videotaped it, since I almost didn't believe it happened. He made me cry--a lot. The set list--which I saw later, showed that they had been going to play "Captain Wedderburn", but it had been crossed out, and "Something Beautiful" had been put in its place at the last minute. So that is why "Something Beautiful" means more to me than ever, and I'm sure Wolf smiled down when she heard that song. Cheers, Sara