The Enduring Power of Loyalty; Friendships

Whether I shall turn out to be the hero of my own life, or whether that station will be held by anybody else, these pages must show...(the opening lines of David Copperfield as written by Charles Dickens;inspired by MTM). Or at least this ACCOUNT will, perhaps, have a reflection on whether I'm going to be the hero in my own life.

...riding high, when I was king; played it hard and fast when I had everything.
I walked away, one week-end; easy come and easy go; and it would end.
Beggin' yooooou; put your loving hand out, Baby.

Beggin~~~~Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons

Some of the best Seasons songs have an emotional sourness(Gaudio) set in a mini-play structure(Crewe). Stuff happens in these songs. Lives change with a hard word or an unspoken one. Wisdom arrives like a chill. It's no Beethoven, but the songs have a pop majesty, the hymns of street corner Romeos. Pop-classic music, for all seasons. Richard Corliss TIME MAGAZINE

Above & beyond---the music, the love interests, and the ebbs and flows of the Four Seasons history is this burning question of loyalty, friendship, obligations, and being a scapegoat; a fall-guy. Was Frankie a life-long slave to Devito's eccentricities, or a Loyal Friend---to the end?. Was Valli(born Francis Stephen Castelluccio), bound by it---or TRUE-BLUE to it? Having attended The theatrical stage sensation JERSEY BOYS at the SHEAS THEATRE Saturday 24 April 2010, this gripping, spiritually and emotionally-binding attachment we humans call FRIENDSHIP came to the surface in a gripping way manifesting itself in a sense of loyalty that had Valli committed to bailing out Devito's 'obligations'---till they were satisfied. That 'obsession' cost Valli dearly. It took a toll on his finances, his marriage, and ultimately would contribute to a devastating loss for Valli. His most difficult year came in 1980, when his stepdaughter Celia was killed in a car accident. Six months after that, his daughter Francine, still a student(22), died of a drug overdose. "We were still grieving Celia's death, [but] Francine was in a good place, gearing up to start singing with my dad," says Valli's daughter Toni, 50. Francine's passing unfolds in a wrenching Jersey Boys scene in which Valli gets a phone call while on the road. He was still 'on-the-road' it seemed perpetually, trying to satisfy Devito's almost $1,000,000.00 debt; part of it to the 'mob' and part of it as IRS back-taxes.

Already reflecting on the powerful poem about FRIENDSHIPS given to me many years ago by Maria Mulder Herberger, and shared with my friends in a previous Web log, I was also sent something this week by Fallonite Dennis Lawson that again hammers home the
importance of maintaining and sustaining relationships. And then, having seen the story of Valli & Devito, and the commitment of that 'brotherhood', I just felt it necessary to reiterate the importance of enriching and deepening the bonds that we hold dear with one another.


Around the
corner I have a friend,
In this great
city that has no end,
Yet the days go
by and weeks rush on,
And before I
know it, a year is gone.
And I never see
my old friends face,
For life is a
swift and terrible race,
He knows
I like him just as well,
As in the days
when I rang his bell.
And he rang
mine but we were younger then,
And now we are
busy, tired men.
Tired of
playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying
to make a name.
'Tomorrow' I
say! 'I will call on Jim
Just to show
that I'm thinking of him.'
But tomorrow
comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance
between us grows and grows.
Around the
corner, yet miles away,
'Here's a
telegram sir,' 'Jim died today.'
And that's what
we get and deserve in the end.
Around the
corner, a vanished friend.
By Henson Towne

And This was sent to me during this last week by Fallonite,
Dennis Lawson.

This poem was written by a terminally ill young girl in a
New York Hospital.
It was sent by a medical doctor -
Make sure to read what is in the closing statement AFTER THE POEM.

SLOW DANCE
Have you ever watched kids On a merry-go-round?
Or listened to the rain Slapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight?
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?

You better slow down. Don't dance so fast.
Time is short. The music won't last.

Do you run through each day On the fly?

When you ask How are you? Do you hear the reply?

When the day is done Do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores Running through
your head?

You'd better slow down Don't dance so fast.

Time is short. The music won't last.

Ever told your child, We'll do it tomorrow?
And in your haste, Not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch, Let a good friendship die
Cause you never had time To call and say,'Hi'

You'd better slow down. Don't dance so fast.
Time is short. The music won't last..

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.

When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift....Thrown away.

Life is not a race. Do take it slower
Hear the music Before the song is over.


This young girl has 6 months left to live,
and as her dying wish, she wanted to send a letter telling everyone to
live their life to the fullest, since she never will.

She'll never make it to prom, graduate from high school, or get married and have a
family of her own.

And Below!!!! Are the answers to last week's Civics Test Pop Quiz!!!

1-E 2-C 3-A 4-B 5-D 6-D 7-D 8-C 9-A 10-C 11-A 12-B 13-E 14-B 15-E 16-D 17-D 18-A 19-B 20-C 21-B 22-A 23-B 24-A 25-B 26-C 27-A 28-C 29-B 30-C 31-A 32-C 33-D

--{-=@
Hickok
The Promise