THE HORN SECTION

Charlie "Yard bird" Parker, jazz legend and saxophone extraordinaire once said, "If you don't live it, it won't come outta your horn."

By now I'm sure you have some idea of just how much I admire people who, like Yard bird, dedicate their entire lives to doin what they love. As far back as I can remember it's something I've looked up to. Unfortunately it's also something I've far from lived up to.

So why in the world then when it comes to bulldogged persistence would you listen to an ill-suited windbag like me? Well, for starters, I too, like those teary-eyed newspapermen in Terry Hills story last post, have wept for the winner in all of us. I too know firsthand the aching and ailing effects of untapped greatness. For nearly four decades inconsistency has gnawed away at any seemingly valid attempt I've made at realizing my own dreams, leaving behind little more than a legacy of good intentions. So you see from that standpoint I have lived it. I've lived it to the very fullest, and I'd like nothin better than to encourage you to live it differently.

From the beginning as the idea of Ingzig began to take shape I'd often talk to my brother Ron about my eagerness to help others, and during one of our early conversations he said, "Well, you know what they say, 'if ya wanna lift people up ya gotta get to higher ground.'" Until then I'd honestly never heard anyone say that, nevertheless, it hit home. It got me to realize that if I'm gonna do this I really gotta do this. If I'm gonna talk the talk, I gotta walk the walk.

And so it's been for the past seven years that I've done my best to perfect the art of Everyday Earnest Effort. Have I succeeded? Not entirely, I still falter now and again (old habits are a bitch). But I do feel I've made some significant strides in the right direction, and I've done so one small and consistent step at a time.

In the words of Dr. Robert Maurer, "While the steps may be small, what we're reaching for is not." Stuff that in your horn and blow it. Happy 4th, see ya next time. Till then, keeep it up.