He was changing churches again and professed he needed a break though I've long known that Guy loves church more than most anybody. Guy, Bill Berry (not the former drummer for REM but the other one) and I spent a weekend in the woods outside of East Dublin, Georgia years earlier. We drank beers and smoked cigars throughout the night, talking about where we thought we'd end up. Guy made it clear he loved the church and was giving his life to it. Bill and I weren't so sure.Shortly after that weekend, Guy figured his career would be significantly enhanced if he stopped hanging out with Bill and me in the woods, smoking cigars and drinking beers all night long.
So he said we could both fly into New Orleans, far away from his church and hang out where nobody would know who he was. I think he told his wife Anita that he was going on a church retreat or something. He didn't want her to know we were hanging out.
I was flat broke and trying to figure out what to do next in life. I was living in a borrowed Cottage as my divorce was being finalized. The pain of not seeing my kids every day was killing me. I needed a break from it and had a credit with just enough space on it to buy a plane ticket and book a room after calling Guy and saying I needed a friend.
Music hung in the air at 10:30 in the morning and I couldn't figure out where it was coming from. I was the only occupant of the tiny guest house and was taking advantage of it laying naked by the pool.
But the music hung there.
Getting up, I threw on some clothes and opened the door to walk out on the sidewalk.
And there it was!
A funeral was passing before me. Women in long dresses with parasols wiped their eyes with lace handkerchiefs. A black man wearing all black beat a drum in a slow hypnotic bang. Two saxophones blew sadness. A lone trumpet harkened the Angels. Behind them was the casket being carried by six pallbearers and behind them were the family and friends weeping in their cocktails.
Standing on the sidewalk wearing black running shorts, a University of Georgia tee shirt, flip flops and holding the beer in my hand, I was mesmerized.
There are times in life when you have to make an instant decision. An opportunity presents itself and you either grab it or let it pass never to come again. This was one of those moments.
Stepping into the street, I joined the family and friends.
An old woman toasted me.
I cried with them all the way to the graveyard.
As the casket was covered with dirt, the music changed and upbeat Jazz filled the air. The old woman grabbed my hand and we danced among the tombstones. People clapped and joined us. Life was conquering death.
Smiling, I returned to the tiny guesthouse with the pool in the courtyard. I threw the clothes in the room and baptized myself in the pool.
I'd thought this was going to be a sad trip, filled with me crying to my friend about everything that was wrong.
I knew better now.
Everything was going to be fine.
