Duck Ponderings: What money can't buy

In March, I attended a graveside service of a friend of our family for years. Due to the coronavirus, there was no public viewing as has been the case for many families. I did a lot of reflecting while driving to Vernon, standing at a distance during the service, and afterward.

The pandemic has certainly changed the world, a world that will never be the same. The time seems right to share a special story and song.

It was late one evening, about 14 years ago, when picking up our ringing phone and then hearing the voice of a former neighbor. He had read a poem from a Mason's publication, “What Money Can't Buy,” and wanted to convert it to a song. While listening to him speak, I felt as if there was much conviction in striving to keep the words of the poem alive through music.

It wasn't long before I was in his living room understanding even more why it was a worthy project. As he performed, I thought of his humbleness which was evident when we first met. I thought of his military, railroad, and logging days helping to create his strong character. Once, a falling tree chased him head first into a creek miraculously leaving only its bark imprint on the back of his legs. Then, I thought of how he and his first wife, Edna, had lost a son, one of my best friends, and daughter-in-law in a tragic accident leaving behind three grandchildren to always be comforted by their grandparents' care and compassion.

Finally, I thought of how he had overcome cancer on several different occasions. I knew then this song should be recorded in the studio and released on a CD. Maurice Grider went into the studio for the first time in his 75 years and put his heart and soul into a masterpiece, a song that reaches into your very depths, a song that I have replayed over and over lately.

I have had the good fortune to be a part of a lot of projects over the years. Being in Maurice's living room hearing “What Money Can't Buy” for the first time and then watching him perform it in the recording studio will always rank among my most memorable experiences.

I asked Avery Tallent, one of our locally talented young musicians, if he might reproduce the song and do it live on YouTube as a tribute to Maurice Grider and the unknown author of the poem. The song serves as a reminder to all of us there are many wonderful aspects of this life that do not require money, just recognition on our parts of their intrinsic value and beauty.