Our Return to Red Rocks, A Summer of Hugs, An Extraordinary Time

“And, in the end
The love you take
is equal to the love you make.”
— Paul McCartney

Thursday morning, how do you do? I am fine, thank you for asking; coffee is in the usual spot; grab a cup while I try and retell a tale. Yesterday morning we had a pretty important call in the morning, then hosted our entire staff on our weekly call.  We welcomed Sweet Melissa, our newest hire that lives in Nashville, TN.

I ran some more calls, did a little training, and then our friend Kerry stopped by.  Kerry lives in Nebraska but also has a law practice here in Denver.  We became friends a few years ago; when he’s in town, my wife and I usually dine with him.  He wanted to see our new digs, so we sat at the kitchen bar and caught up.   How did we become friends?  I met him, and he said, “you are an interesting young man; how do we keep in touch?”  I said, “I write some stuff every day. I’ll add you to my list, and boom, a friendship was born.

We headed down the hill to Brooks Place Tavern.  I write about BPT often, Kerry on the way to our home, made sure to stop by this now iconic spot.  He met the owners and the staff.  When we arrived to meet Bay for a quick bite to eat before our return to Red Rocks, the team said how friendly and kind our friend was.

We hung out for a quick spell and then headed to see our first show in 18 months at the famous theater.  We have a way we do Red Rocks; we park in the upper south lot, we get there a little early, we tailgate with the other attendees, we usually make friends, yesterday we were by a group of twelve. So I was able to watch the reconnection of humanity.  Friends that had not seen each other for months now returning to what some might call our church.  Time and time again, I watched humans, smiling, mask-free, hugging, embracing like it was 2019.  But the hugs seemed longer; maybe a bonus of this past year is longer, deeper hugs.

We sat together, had a couple of seltzers, and watched as the lot filled up.  Eventually, we tore down our camp and headed the long journey up to the venue.  I must say I saw many smiles; this was the first whole capacity show since the shit we called 2020. Lucy Dacus opened, a great performer, her band, was into it, she was very emotional, I think many of us were a little emotional finally returning to normal.

We all grabbed another seltzer before sitting in our seats.  We were about 15 rows from the stage, directly in front of the video screen. The venue was packed; there was a vibration of happiness.  After Lucy’s emotional set, our friend Shakey Graves arrived to bang out a fantastic performance. Although Shakey became a favorite of ours during the lockdown, it was no coincidence that he was our first show back.  Something bigger than ourselves is guiding our lives.

I reached out to Shakey on Cameo a few months ago and asked him to send a video to our kids. So he did, and then when they got engaged, he did another video.  Shakey will be called upon when one of our kids has a significant life event.  He will be a part of our family moving forward, and damn, that boy can play guitar and sing; if you don’t know Shakey Graves, find the song “And so it goes,” and you will get an idea of the massive talent hidden in this little lad from Nashville, TN.

Our routine at Red Rocks is to say until 10:00 and leave a little early.  There is a Chick FilA sandwich tent on the way to our car.  I donated $20.00 and got three sandwiches; we got home about 10:30, sat up another half hour talking about the show before hitting the bed at 11:00. Now, if you know me, you know that it is 2 hours past my bedtime. However, I did sleep in until 7:00 getting my much-needed 8 hours of sleep. So yesterday, life returned to normal.

I’m going to run down the hill and get a shot in my arse. Then, I’ll have lunch with an old friend, maybe see another friend who is a long hauler with COVID; I’ve got some chores to do, and then return home to hang out with my wife tonight.  I’ve got a full day tomorrow, and then boom, another weekend offers us some time of relaxation and a couple of hikes with PVHT.

I want to point out this is an extraordinary time in society.  People are returning to their favorite spots, people are not afraid to hug, but again, the hugs are much longer, more intense; it’s as if we needed these last few months to remind us of the importance of human touch. So do not take this time for granted; lean in, smile, hug, as much as you like, people are open to receiving you and your warm embrace.  Welcome to 2021, the Summer of Hugs.

“And, in the end
The love you take
is equal to the love you make.”
— Paul McCartney