Friday was crisp and breezy.\u00a0 I arrived at Bethesda Fountain just as the cowboy finished his last number.\u00a0 Before too long, a man dropped 41 cents into my case.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A roly-poly man in his 40\u2019s rushed up to me.\u00a0 \u201cI have two 2\u2019s here,\u201d he said, showing me the bills.\u00a0 \u201cCan you sing something for my brother Lowell?\u00a0 It\u2019s his birthday.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cHow about ‘Happy Birthday?’\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cPerfect,\u201d he said, disappearing behind a large camera.\u00a0 I sang to Lowell.\u00a0 The man gave me a thumbs-up, then ran to catch up with his wife.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
While singing \u201cMaking Love Ukulele Style,\u201d a man set up in front of me and began recording.\u00a0 He dropped a buck and stayed to talk.\u00a0 He was from Toronto, and his 12-year-old daughter had just taken up the uke.\u00a0 He wondered if I gave lessons.\u00a0 \u201cHow much?\u201d he said, reaching for my CD.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cTen dollars, U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Lots of people stopped near me to take group photos and selfies at the fountain\u2019s edge.\u00a0 People came off the benches to give me money.\u00a0 The park today was happening.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A young couple from the Czech Republic stopped.\u00a0 This time it was brother Martin\u2019s birthday.\u00a0 The man and I sang \u201cHappy Birthday\u201d together, while the woman recorded.\u00a0 The man gave me a fiver.\u00a0 Looking into my case, I now saw a 10, a 5, and 2 2\u2019s among the singles; it was already a very good day.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Four siblings under 10 came running off the bench to hula.\u00a0 They were from Illinois.\u00a0 A few minutes later, 3 young teen-aged girls from Ohio stopped to hula.\u00a0 They stepped up on the ledge, where my solar-powered hula girls were dancing.\u00a0 I sang \u201cThe Hukilau Song,\u201d while the girls, who seemed to be aping the toys, stiffly rocked back and forth.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I was packing up the leis when a couple, who had been sitting in the northeast corner by the lake, came by to give me a dollar.\u00a0 \u201cI haven\u2019t closed my case yet,\u201d I said.\u00a0 \u201cHave you got time for a hula?\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, we\u2019ve got to go,\u201d said the woman.\u00a0 Then, apropos of nothing, \u201cToday\u2019s my birthday.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"