“Weave Me The Sunshine” — A Birthday Hug to Al Lowenstein

“Weave, weave, weave me the sunshine out of the falling rain.
Weave me the hope of a new tomorrow and fill my cup again.”  (Peter Yarrow, 1972)

You may have noticed the campaign button on top of my home page.  Al’s name pops up in my bio and my 36 Days blog, too.  He was my boss/hero during the Summer of ’78,  when I joined his Congressional Primary brigade as a $40 a week staffer, answering phones, fanning the NY  heat, helping pedestrians decide.  We watched Al turn his rival upside down in debates and  interrupted each other enthusiastically at Puffing Billy.  When Manhattan voters thinned out in August, Al and I joked about moving the campaign to the beach.  It could have been one of the 3 AM calls he was famous for, when he told me to collect some petty cash and  head out to East Hampton to help out our cause   — and I did.  And I remember so clearly when William F. Buckley called, eager to to chat with Al, and I soon learned they were chums who seized every chance to debate.  Preaching to the choir dulls the mental edge,  Al (and years later, my son) explained to me:  sparring with Buckley does not.  The crowd of more than 2000 mourners who attended Al’s  Central Synagogue funeral  services were my people.  We heard Ted Kennedy and William F. Buckley deliver the most beautiful eulogies, side by side.   Peter Yarrow’s “Weave Me the Sunshine” was one of Al’s favorite songs.  It carries us to the new tomorrow.  Here it is: in honor of Al’s January 16 birthday.  www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVuX22LO2Hg And along with his song, I’m adding a college debate organized by my son  that I’m quite sure would have delighted Al.   www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ksJeUz–Lo&feature=player_detailpage#t=160s

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