Variations on ... Church

It is July and I love July. I was born in July. A year ago in July I got sand in my mouth and it has worked its way into my heart. I marched down Orient Beach in July with Conner and Hugh and a hundred other people and we laughed and enjoyed one another as we always do. The greatest party ever to occur on Tybee Island occurred in July! The most sensual dance I've ever had in my life happened in July! Give me hot! This is my temperate zone! Who needs clothes?

Today December is in my head.

Strange huh?

"O what a night! Late December back in 63."

I saw Frankie Vallie and the Four Seasons at the Johnny Mercer Theater a thousand years ago. Ginny Helmy and I went. I remember being turned off at their Vegas style showmanship and Frankie left me a little cold. But when the drummer sang "December 1963, O what A Night" ... I loved it.

It remains a favorite of mine.

According to legend, the band had just made it hot and was touring the country. It was Christmas time and the record company was wanting to reward the kids for making them all that money. So they sent hookers to the hotel room of whatever city they were in and ... O what a night.

So I woke up with the song in my head which is odd cause I haven't thought of it in a thousand years. But last night ... O what a Night! We were at Bernie's listening to Sam and Gordon play damn good live music. I was being colored by little girls. We danced. Ice cream appeared. I was surrounded by friends who I love and who love me.

I sit on the beloved back deck thinking about ... December. Specifically George Winston's album "December" and his incredible version of "Variations of Cannon in C by Pachelbel" ... Oh my God! ... what a religious experience ... orgasmic!

When I was in Louisville ... working as a professional Christian ... getting paid to do what ministers ask others to do for free ... I was introduced to Wyndam Hill and there was George Winston and this song. I remember sitting on the porch getting lost in it. I was living with homeless people in a church and the baptismal pool was the bathtub. My kids ... Jeremy and Kristen owned the streets of the city ... meaning that homeless people would panhandle to buy them Happy Meals from McDonalds ... Bill Berry and I were still doing stuff ... "Jesus Shaves" ... and we were in trouble a lot ... then AIDS happened and we got in much more serious trouble ... then I hired Cindy Weber to be Associate Pastor and that is much worse to Southern Baptist than AIDS ...

It all makes you tired.

So I would sit on the front porch listening to George Winston playing "Variations on Cannon" and have an orgasm over the beauty of the music.

I haven't thought about in years ... until last night.

O what a night.

So this Sunday morning ... before Bar Church ... I am in Church ... well ... a variation ... by Pachelbel ... played in C ... by George Winston.