My Story
A Piano and a Guitar
There was a piano in the house where my brother Mark and I grew up on Signal Mountain, just outside Chattanooga, Tennessee
Mark was the one who played, and I can still remember his renditions of “Bridge Over Troubled Water” and “Maxwell’s Silver Hammer.
While Mark read sheet music, I was fascinated by lyrics. Once, when my Uncle John came to visit, he brought his guitar and sang the 1969 hit, “Jean,” and the Elvis Presley song, “Hound Dog.” This inspired me to ask for a guitar that Christmas, and I began taking lessons. I strummed for hours and, eventually, I began writing my own songs.
A Trip to Mexico
The summer I turned twelve, my father drove our family in our Oldsmobile Delta 88 from Chattanooga to Acapulco, Mexico. I knew just enough Spanish to be our family interpreter, and it was exciting for me to be immersed in another culture. This led me to study Spanish in college, and to spend my junior year in Seville, Spain. I went on to serve in the Peace Corps in Guatemala (pictured). It was there that I met my wife Barb, a Californian who moved with me back to Chattanooga. She adapted surprisingly quickly to southern living, especially once she learned to understand the accent.
A life with immigrants
After Barb and I returned from the Peace Corps, we began making friends with Latino immigrants. We had three children, and we eventually settled into a shared housing arrangement with immigrant families. Our kids grew up together in this little housing compound in Chattanooga where we still live twenty-five years later.
A Mennonite Adventure
When our three kids were in elementary and middle school, Barb and I moved to Colombia for two years to serve with Mennonite Central Committee. It was exciting to live as a family in Latin America, and to see our kids immersed in the language and culture.
Barb and I had been impressed by the Mennonites’ work in Guatemala, and we joined a Mennonite church during the 10 years we lived in Raleigh, NC. We loved the way Mennonites lived out their beliefs in service, simple living, and peacemaking. It was inspiring to work with Colombian Mennonites who have worked courageously for decades, pioneering work for peace in a context of armed conflict.
A Journey with Giovanny
Giovanny was the doorman at the apartment building where my family and I lived in Colombia, and we became close friends. I was fascinated by the story of Giovanny’s life, and by his poetic descriptions. His stories began to inspire me to write about his life, and this writing turned into songs. Years after we met, Giovanny embarked on a migrant journey from Colombia to Chattanooga. Just as Giovanny was beginning his journey, I met Chilean singer-songwriter-producer Pedro Abriles (center), who had recently moved to Chattanooga. Pedro ‘s superpowers enabled me to record and film “Journey with Giovanny,” my second album, Waterside, and the new songs I continue to write.
A winding trail
It’s a joy to retrace these trails of my childhood again now in this third act of my life, to strum my guitar, and to write new songs about the things that inspire me. I’m grateful for the twists and turns, the ways the trails intersect, and the way different parts of our lives come together and take on new meaning. Thanks for being on the journey with me!