"I meant to do my work today...."

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I found something today!  What did I find?

It found it online...some tracks from one of may all-time favorite LPs, "Friends."  I used to have this pink-colored album.  But like all my "worldly" albums, I rid myself of them in late summer of 1977 when I decided to give my whole self "to Jesus."  I left the albums at a mental health hospital, Broughton, in Morganton, NC.  I wasn't ever a patient there, but thought maybe the folks there, patients and employees, might enjoy the music.  I felt a certain empathy for patients with mental health challenges, and for some reason I chose Broughton.

Ahh, now I recall why I chose Broughton.  I had heard that the song "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor was about something to do with Taylor's own hospitalization due to mental health challenges.  I was told part of his time was spent at Broughton. I had quite a few James Taylor albums in my stack; thus I thought of Broughton Hospital. Perhaps too, I felt an unconscious connection as my mother had spent time at Broughton when I was a toddler.

I just now googled and found some interesting facts; James great-grandfather was a doctor at Broughton before it was named Broughton. Click here to read a snippet: Sweet Baby James' ties to Burke by Steve Walker from the Morganton (NC) News-Herald.

Click Snopes link, "Fire and Rain", for a history behind that song. It appears James didn't spend time at the Morganton facility; yet sought help elsewhere for certain struggles.

So I left my albums; including Rubber Soul, The White Album, Friends, James Taylor's works, Steam-Powered Aeroplane, and lots more good stuff; that late summer day on a desk at Broughton Hospital.  I asked the front office where I could leave a donation and I was directed to another office.  No one was in at the moment; it may have been lunch time.  My stack of albums was at least a foot high; the stack was heavy.  I left a note on top of the stack, "From Jesus."  Oh well! ;-D

The following songs from "Friends" are some of my favorite songs of all time.  Through the decades I have continued to say those words, "I meant to do my work today...but the brown bird sang in the apple tree....and all the leaves were calling me..."

(Click here for a couple more songs: John Hartford's Going to Work in Tall Buildings and another favorite song from "Friends," Michelle's Song. ~Two Songs: Hartford & John...~)

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Two years ago, my daughter bought me an older Elton John CD because she saw this song, Friends, was on it.  Through the years she'd heard me say how much I loved the song, but we never heard it on the radio nor did I have a copy of it. My daughter saw it listed on that CD, and now I have it. Plus she got to hear it for the first time.  Probably my most favorite song of all time.....so far.  ;-)

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