General Conference is nearly a month behind me now, but I have neglected to share one observation I made during the event that seemed to resonate with some. Sometime during the ten days United Methodists were together in Fort Worth, I observed that General Conference, at least in plenary sessions, can seem like a cross between C-Span and Monty Python.

Last week, attending my older daughter’s college, Julie and I drove two vehicles. We were not just attending her graduation, we were helping move some of her things back home for the summer. Our son, David, traveled from Fargo, North Dakota to Duluth and then with us to the graduation. Because we each had a vehicle, David shared time between his parents. When we were together, David and I, among other things, talked about and shared music. The first music I remember him identifying as his own was M.C. Hammer. He is a little chagrined by that. Somewhere along the line, he started listening to people like Bob Dylan, and to music like the blues. It was music to my ears –so to speak. When in college, David hosted a blues show on the college radio station. He and I attended a Bob Dylan concert together in Fargo a few years ago. We both love music, and we enjoy comparing notes on it.

Well, David shared with me his passion for a band called “The Pogues.” They are an Irish folk/punk band. We listened to a compilation CD he had made. If you want to know more about this band, type “The Pogues” into an internet search engine (that’s the more formal way of saying “google ‘The Pogues’”).

I shared with David two bands that I had been listening to lately. While my listening tends toward music made decades ago – classic rock, jazz – I always enjoy “discovering” some new bands to listen to. Around the time of the Grammy Awards, I heard a little about two bands that I wanted to check out – The Foo Fighters and The Plains White Ts. Recently I did just that, and found I enjoy both groups – being especially drawn to The Foo Fighters CD Echo, Silence, Patience, Grace.

If you want to hear one of my favorite Foo Fighters songs, “Home” – here’s the link.

The Foo Fighters, "Home"

I like the spiritual yearning expressed in the song.

And here’s a link to a really nice song by The Plain White Ts, a song that is about hopes and dreams and love.

The Plain White Ts, "Hey There Delilah

Enjoy.

With Faith and With Feathers,

David