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*Author:*	Laura Shayne
*E-mail:*	mt_legacy_music@hotmail.com
*Date:*	3/26/2007 3:33:27 PM
*Subject:*	Re: Mickey Newbury
*Message:*	Barbara, I have enjoyed your spirit and your poetry. I'm grateful you started this thread. It's nice to go back... to remember. Some days I feel so close to him still, and yet others I feel like he's a world away. I'm lucky enough to have the music. Not only does it comfort, but it jogs my mind and helps me remember things about him that I'd forgotten. I have so many memories surrounding my time with my dad. I remember laying on his chest as a little girl. He would put us face down as infants on his chest, and tap out rhythms on our backs as he chanted to put us to sleep. Worked like a charm. As I grew older, I became more of a shadow. I would lay next to him with my head on his shoulder as he wrote. Sometimes he'd let me help. As I grew even older I became more of a private restaraunt than anything. And I didn't mind. Walking by dad meant making a turkey sandwich and a fresh cup of coffee. grin Every one of us knew the outcome of strolling by dad's room, and not one of us minded though we'd joke about it some days. He was wrinkly eyes. Silk robes. Shuffling feet. He was Sumatra coffee. Honey roasted peanuts. He was kind, and comforting. He always told us he loved us and gave a signature kiss if we were in sight. And if you want to know what he was from his own point of view... here's something you might enjoy! I Am What I Am I am what I am what I am A fool and a hobo a drunkard a dreamer A cowboy a drifter an outlaw a farmer A taylor a tinker a bad mother trucker A soldier a son of a sailor a saint A boy from the country the city the streets Asleep in an alley with nothing to eat From the woods to the hood to a cab on the beat From the swamp to the hills where you look you will see Me – for I am what I am what I am I black I am brown I am yellow and red I am white I am green – alive I am dead -Mickey Newbury Thanks again Barbara. Laura Shayne