I’m plagiarizing lyrics from Paul McCartney’s song, “Let it Be” with the title of this blog.

Here’s a “Labor Day” story that touched me. (oh… and happy holidays everyone)

I spent a lot of money at a bad time a few years ago to build a wood shop. I’m a luthier (instrument maker).

I used the wood shop some… not much.

A friend of mine, Evo Bluestein, a world-class folk artist/multi-instrumentalist and historian/authority on America’s music, came to my wood shop and asked me if I could make him a small-sized version of his Evoharp (his autoharp for adult-sized musicians). The small 3/4 sized autoharp was for young kids/students to use. He was to call his new instrument the “Sparrowharp.” It was to have a little sparrow silhouette for it’s sound hole.

photo: courtesy of Evo Bluestein

I agreed to take on the task and began designing and creating this interesting and challenging instrument. I say challenging, not because of the numerous components and tedium it would take to produce – using a variety of specialty hardwoods and hardware, but because of my concern for the sound quality of a much smaller acoustic instrument. You know, guitar bodies are BIG and push out lots of sound. This little sparrow did not have any girth at all to send out it’s polyphonic tones. That was the issue to overcome.

I got busy with the project.

My wood shop had not been getting the use my investment mandated, but one thing I did do was design the Evo Bluestein “Sparrowharp.”

I used to demonstrate software (at major events) for Corel Corporation. I was a Corel Certified Trainer and was a full-blown guru with CorelDRAW (a vector drawing software program). Using CorelDRAW, I began designing schematics to create my prototypes for Evo’s baby harp. Since it needed to be a smaller size so that kids could use this instrument to learn to play an autoharp, I had to use some serious mathematical calculations to design the instrument. I loved the challenge and “dig” math… so this was an entertaining part of the project.

Some time lapsed while I married my computer generated data and carefully created templates, all seasoned with a touch of a luthier’s intuition into the first prototype.

I invited Evo to see the “Sparrowharp.” He was pleased and his instrument (and my templates) went on to production. A star was born. So many kids are learning to be musicians with this great custom sized autoharp that if the story ended here it would be an “okay” tale. However… here is the touching part (and thank you for indulging my long-winded set up):

Evo sent me this story. I feel that I was in the loop because of the work I did in my too costly, poorly timed investment into my wood shop.

Evo wrote:

Just got this wonderful story from a harp customer and her new 3/4 sized Sparrowharp. –Evo

Hello Evo Bluestein,

I have been using my Sparrowharp and am very happy with it. Though I have some physical struggles that limit my energy, just a little, by God’s help, I manage to keep ministering (including singing/playing) to my Hospice clients. We all LOVE your Sparrowharp with its mellow and soothing sound.

A story: Hospice staff sent me to visit an elderly woman who was in her final days of life but going through what we call, ‘terminal restlessness.” She had been shrieking and thrashing in bed for 3 days. She hadn’t slept, and neither had her husband or family. When I arrived at the home, everyone was in a state of wide-eyed desperation.

Now I’d met with this dear lady on previous occasions and knew she so loved to hear and even sing the old hymns with me.

So, sitting at her bedside, I took out my Sparrowharp and began softly playing and singing: How Great Thou Art, Amazing Grace, The Old Rugged Cross, and many others. Within 10 minutes, this precious one was quiet, then humming along with me, then in a few more minutes, fell fast asleep. After about half an hour, I slipped out the door, whispering farewell to the one family member who was still slightly awake. Within 12 hours, she was ‘home’ singing with the angels.

Thank you so much for caring and for producing such a useful instrument,

With gratefulness,

Ruth P.

DIFFERENT TOPIC: Attention Photoshop Free Video Training Enrollees

Here is a sneak preview of the types of things I’ll be teaching you with my Free Online Video Training Program.

The French Role (a.k.a. “Gifts”) – photo by Marc Blake, set design and costumes by Sandra Klauschie, grip: Gabba Darcuiel – from the Westcott Scenic Background Series (see: http://rentscenicbackgrounds.com/)

… am I getting close Kelly?