Color has returned to the Women\u2019s Gate.\u00a0 Swathes of yellow stellas, red and pink begonia and emerging red roses have joined the gomphrena and cleome that I saw being planted almost 2 weeks ago.\u00a0 The dogwood blossoms have transformed into grape-sized seed pods on long stems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Orange day lilies tower above the rock of peace; I can\u2019t read the plaque on that rock without a shudder or a laugh at all the wars these so-called peaceful countries have waged since joining with John Lennon to “Give Peace a Chance.”\u00a0 Dusty pink astilbe and yellow archangel round out the catalog of flowering plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As I descended the stairs to Bethesda Fountain, I located the source of the amplified guitar I was hearing.\u00a0 It\u2019s Colin, the singing cowboy, returned to the park for the summer, playing \u201cLayla.\u201d\u00a0 I sat down next to him, waiting for him to finish.\u00a0 Two policemen on horseback clopped through the fountain area and up the path toward the boathouse.\u00a0 Colin kept singing.\u00a0 When they\u2019d passed, we started to laugh.\u00a0 You never know when the authorities will enforce the rules about amplification.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Colin was done, but someone else was waiting to play, a\npercussionist with drumsticks and a tambourine. \nHe said he\u2019d only play for 30 minutes, so I moved to the opposite side\nof the fountain and warmed up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After 30 minutes, he was gone and I moved back to center stage with $3 in my case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019d spent more time with 2 walkaways than with all the people who gave me money combined.\u00a0 A young Bangladeshi man, wired to his phone with a headset, was live-streaming to his family back home.\u00a0 \u201cThey think you\u2019re terrific,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cSay hello to them.\u201d\u00a0 I said hello.\u00a0 I sang a song.\u00a0 I put a lei around the young man\u2019s neck and had him dance.\u00a0 \u201cI love New York,\u201d he said.\u00a0 \u201cEveryone has been so kind and helpful.\u00a0 And now here you are, so welcoming to me and my family, thousands of miles away.\u201d\u00a0 He shook my hand vigorously, then moved on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A group from the photography club of PS 7, in the Bronx, also\nstopped to dance. Six kids danced to \u201cThe\nHukilau Song\u201d while their classmates took photos. After the dance, their adult supervisor hurried\nthe kids along to the next photogenic venue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At center stage, I laid out my paraphernalia again, then heard\na violinist tuning up. He too was\namplified. I approached and told him I\u2019d\nbeen waiting for the drummer to leave; he could move to the opposite side of the\nfountain if he wanted. \u201cOh, while we\u2019re\ntalking,\u201d I said, \u201cthat amp\u2026\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI know, I know,\u201d he interrupted me.\u00a0 \u201cI\u2019ve already been told.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I began singing, and before long a man walked by and put a\ndollar in my case. Soon after, a kid of\n8 or 9 put in another dollar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A little girl stopped to inspect my case. \u201cHave you got time for a hula today?\u201d Her mom and dad were nearby; they nodded\ntheir permission and gave her a dollar for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A little kid smiled at me and gave me 10 cents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 40-something from North Carolina, for whom this was not her first hula, danced an expressive, sultry hula, then gave me a dollar. She was followed by a preteen whose hula was somewhat stiff. She also gave me a dollar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A group of kids from California walked by.\u00a0 \u201cHas this group got time for a hula today?\u201d\u00a0 The tour guide posed the question to his charges.\u00a0 No one seemed to want to dance, until a young man of 15 or 16 stepped forward.\u00a0 When no one joined him, I said, \u201cIt\u2019s you and me, man.\u201d\u00a0 I\u2019d barely begun \u201cThe Hukilau Song\u201d when some other kids walked up, put on leis and joined the first in a hula.\u00a0 Altogether, 5 kids danced, ending in wild applause from their friends.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou deserve a tip,\u201d one of the kids said, dropping a handful\nof change into my case. \u201cYou are\nawesome.\u201d A couple of other kids also\nponied up. I tipped my hat to the tour\nguide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A 12-13 year-old boy broke away from a gathering of kids with a $10-bill in his hand.\u00a0 \u201cYou need change?\u201d I asked him.\u00a0 He looked at me as if I were crazy.\u00a0 \u201cGreat, thanks a lot,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCongratulations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A young girl from Boston gave me a dollar for a hula.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another young girl came up with a dollar. Her name was Caitlin, and she had recently\nmoved from Arizona to Florida. She danced\nto \u201cLittle Grass Shack,\u201d and had done so with such delight her grandmother was\nmoved to give me another buck.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After my set, I moved to the shade and counted out $21.38.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"