yes, I thought so, and it really touched me, when I read it, so I felt I had to share you are so welcome Frances Sugar Sugar Says: People are like stained glass windows: They sparkle and shine when the sun is out, But when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if there is a light shining from within.
----- Original Message ----- From: "Frances Vitulla" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, October 01, 2008 8:53 AM Subject: [RecipesAndMore] Re: The Song That Silenced The Cappuccino Machine > > Hi Sugar, what a wonderful message. I agree. Thankyou for sending > this. > Original message: > >> The Song That Silenced The Cappuccino Machine > >> . > >> By John Thomas Oaks... > >> It was chilly in Manhattan but warm inside the Starbucks' shop on 51st >> Street > >> and Broadway, just a skip up from > >> Times Square. Early November weather in > >> New York City holds only the slightest hint of the bitter chill of > >> late December and January, > >> but it's enough to send the masses crowding indoors to vie for > >> available space and > >> warmth. > >> For a musician, it's the most lucrative Starbucks' location in the > >> world, I'm told, > >> and consequently, the tips can be substantial if you play your tunes > >> right. Apparently, > >> we were striking all the right chords that night, because our basket > >> was almost overflowing. > >> It was a fun, low-pressure gig - I was playing keyboard and singing > >> backup for my > >> friend who also added rhythm with an arsenal of percussion > >> instruments. We mostly > >> did pop songs from the '40s to the '90s with a few original tunes thrown >> in. > >> During our emotional rendition of the classic, 'If You Don't Know Me by >> Now,' > >> I noticed a lady sitting in one of the lounge chairs across from me. > >> She was swaying to the beat and singing along. > >> After the tune was over, she approached me. 'I apologize for singing > >> along on that > >> song. Did it bother you?' she asked. > >> 'No,' I replied. 'We love it when the audience joins in. Would you > >> like to sing up > >> front on the next selection?' > >> To my delight, she accepted my invitation. 'You choose,' I said. > >> 'What are you in the mood to sing?' > >> 'Well. .. Do you know any hymns?' > >> Hymns? This woman didn't know who she was dealing with. I cut my > >> teeth on hymns. > >> Before I was even born, I was going to church. I gave our guest > >> singer a knowing look. 'Name one.' > >> 'Oh, I don't know. There are so many good ones. You pick one.' > >> 'Okay,' I replied. 'How about 'His Eye is on the Sparrow'?' > >> My new friend was silent, her eyes averted. Then she fixed her eyes > >> on mine again > >> and said, 'Yeah. Let's do that one.' She slowly nodded her head, put > >> down her purse, straightened her jacket and faced the center of the > >> shop. With my two-bar setup, she began to sing. > >> 'Why should I be discouraged? Why should the shadows come?' > >> The audience of coffee drinkers was transfixed. Even the gurgling > >> noises of the cappuccino > >> machine ceased as the employees stopped what they were doing to > >> listen. The song > >> rose to its conclusion. > >> 'I sing because I'm happy; I sing because I'm free. > >> For His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me.' > >> When the last note was sung, the applause crescendoed to a deafening > >> roar that would > >> have rivaled a sold-out crowd at Carnegie Hall. Embarrassed, the > >> woman tried to shout > >> over the din, 'Oh, y'all go back to your coffee! I didn't come in > >> here to do a concert! > >> I just came in here to get somethin' to drink, just like you!' But > >> the ovation continued. > >> I embraced my new friend. 'You, my dear, have made my whole year! > >> That was beautiful!' > >> 'Well, it's funny that you picked that particular hymn,' she said. > >> 'Why is that?' > >> 'Well ..' she hesitated again, 'that was my daughter's favorite song.' > >> 'Really!' I exclaimed. > >> 'Yes,' she said, and then grabbed my hands. By this time, the > >> applause had subsided > >> and it was business as usual. 'She was 16. She died of a brain tumor > >> last week.' > >> I said the first thing that found its way through my stunned silence. > >> 'Are you going to be okay?' > >> She smiled through tear-filled eyes and squeezed my hands. 'I'm gonna > >> be okay. I've just got to keep trusting the Lord and singing his > >> songs, and everything's gonna be just fine.' She picked up her bag, > >> gave me her card, and then she was gone. > >> Was it just a coincidence that we happened to be singing in that > >> particular coffee shop on that particular November night? Coincidence > >> that this wonderful lady just happened to walk into that particular > >> shop? Coincidence that of all the hymns to > >> choose from, I just happened to pick the very hymn that was the > >> favorite of her daughter, > >> who had died just the week before? I refuse to believe it. > >> God has been arranging encounters in human history since the > >> beginning of time, and it's no stretch for me to imagine that he > >> could reach into a coffee shop in midtown Manhattan and turn an > >> ordinary gig into a revival. It was a great reminder that if we keep > >> trusting him and singing his songs, everything's gonna be okay. > >> The next time you feel like GOD can't use you, just remember... > >> Noah was a drunk, > >> Abraham was too old, > >> Isaac was a daydreamer, > >> Jacob was a liar, > >> Leah was ugly, > >> Joseph was abused, > >> Moses had a stuttering problem, > >> Gideon was afraid, > >> Sampson had long hair and was a womanizer, > >> Rahab was a prostitute, > >> Jeremiah and Timothy were too young, > >> David had an affair and was a murderer, > >> Elijah was suicidal, > >> Isaiah preached naked, > >> Jonah ran from God, > >> Naomi was a widow, > >> Job went bankrupt, > >> John the Baptist ate bugs, > >> Peter denied Christ, > >> The Disciples fell asleep while praying, > >> Martha worried about everything, > >> The Samaritan woman was divorced, more than once, > >> Zaccheus was too small, > >> Paul was too religious, > >> Timothy had an ulcer... > >> AND, Lazarus was dead! > >> I didn't know some of this! No more excuses now!! > >> God can use us to our full potential. Besides we aren't the message, > >> we are just the messenger. > >> 'Let your LIGHT so SHINE...' Matt 5:16 > >> 'For a musician or singer this is what it is all about. Oh 'God be in > >> all that we do.' > >> Sugar Says: >> People are like stained glass windows: They sparkle and shine when the >> sun is out, >> But when the darkness sets in, their true beauty is revealed only if >> there is a light shining from within. > >> > -- > Email services provided by the System Access Mobile Network. Visit > www.serotek.com to learn more about accessibility anywhere. > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Access the Recipes And More list archives at: http://www.mail-archive.com/recipesandmore%40googlegroups.com/ Visit the group home page at: http://groups.google.com/group/RecipesAndMore -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
