Dizzy, and the Angel

You're driving to work on a cold, dark morning,
not feeling so great after two weeks of bronchitis...
you turn the radio on for company, the jazz station, and
luck into a favorite Dizzy Gillespie tune, A Night In Tunisia,
which immediately starts improving your mood, as
you pass through deserted downtown streets
on your way to the Hoan Bridge, and Jones Island,
stopping at a red light just before the bridge,
near the Summerfest grounds...and,
as you wait for the light to turn green,
shaking your head in astonishment at
what you hear coming out of Dizzy's trumpet,
you happen to glance over towards the lake
at the electric Summerfest sign flashing
a Holiday greeting, featuring
an angel playing a trumpet, with
notes pouring out of the horn, as
Dizzy blows, and blows, on the radio—
well, you wouldn't necessarily have to be a trumpet player,
and the son of a trumpet player, like me,
to find yourself laughing quietly,
as the pieces of the cold, dark world come together
to make a bright, amazing whole


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