PHOTOS:Mary van Balen
Short gray hair replaced the long dark cascades that framed her face in younger years and some songs were voiced in a lower pitch, but Joan Baez still sang songs that called blessings on the poor and homeless, the “salt of the earth,” that lamented the injustice suffered by “deportees,” and that called for peace.
Her voice occasionally soared in the same hauntingly clear tremulous soprano tones that had filled concert halls and farm worker’s fields in the 60’s and 70’s. More often, the sound was softer, and once the ending of piece appeared sooner than expected, dangling awkwardly for a moment between her and the young man who was accompanying her on guitar.
“We love you, Joan!” someone in the audience shouted.
She looked up. “Even with all my flaws?”
The answer was resounding applause. “Yes!”
“Well, they will spill out all over,” she said with a smile. If they did, no one noticed.
The evening was a delightful ninety minutes, honoring not only the woman standing humbly before us, honestly singing out her heart and soul, but also her years of giving, of challenging, of championing the poor and forgotten.
The crowd relished joining in on the chorus of “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down.” I managed to refrain from singing along with so many that I had sung as a young woman myself in coffee houses, sing-a-longs, and war protest marches. Joan Baez had been a heroine. Along with Pete Seeger, Bob Dylan, and Peter, Paul, and Mary, she was an inspiration and source of songs that became part of my repertoire.
How refreshing to join with others in celebrating the gift of a life well-lived. No feigned Hollywood perfection. No attempt to hide evidence of hard fought struggles. No adulation of youth. Age does not diminish what we have to give to the world, only how we offer it. At nearly seventy, Joan Baez still tours the world, singing her songs, lifting the marginalized into view, calling for justice, recognizing God with us, and asking for blessings.
After the concert, I visited with a friend I had sung with years ago. He is recovering from open-heart surgery and this was his first night out. Like Joan Baez, he is still singing. When he left, I wandered outside and joined a handful of others hoping to see Joan. Time passed quickly as I shared conversation with a mother and daughter who had arranged to enjoy the evening together: Christy and Elise.
PHOTO:Christy 
Finally Joan emerged from the theater and walked to the large touring bus. Tired as she must have been, she graciously signed autographs and posed for photos with her fans. I was grateful for the opportunity to thank her for her life, for her work, and appreciated the hug she gave me in return.
© 2010 Mary van Balen
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