By: Patricia Francis Good     

It’s been over a year since I lost my husband of 33 years. To say it’s been a
really tough year is an understatement. But God has a way of knowing just how
to get you through anything. Just before Skip died I joined The Harmony Belles.
This barbershop group is directed by the gifted and beloved Artie Dolt. With over
50 years of experience in directing barbershop ensembles, Artie has a most
unique and successful management style. He believes in using “positive
affirmative” rather than “criticism”. And without fail, Artie leads by example when
he frequently says to us. .. “Together is my favorite place to be”. He often
stops us in the middle of a song to tell us that we have no idea how good we are.
And if you bring a guest singer he will again stop the singing and point out that
you told him your guest was a good singer, but you didn’t tell him that she was
THAT GOOD! His favorite quote is by Pablo Picasso who said, “The meaning of
life is to find your gift … the purpose of life is to give it away.”

So here are Artie’s rules
1) We’re going to be a family
2) We’re going to have fun
3) We’re going to put out good music
We have all had a time when life took a cruel or heart wrenching turn, and I am no exception. After Skip died, I really didn’t feel like singing. Unlike the choruses my sisters Kathy & Janet had been involved with before, this time it seemed
appealing to me to join. There was no competition, no costumes, and no cost to
join. Besides my sisters & I have sung harmony together all our lives.

But the first Thursday evening of chorus practice after Skip’s death that I attended didn’t go very well. I was eager to join my sisters, but it was too soon for me …but I went anyway. I sat next to my sister Janet in the Bass section. (By the way there are no tryouts or auditions either. You just pick what part you would like to sing.) That night however I was feeling so much grief that it was hard to raise my voice in song. And when Artie started directing us in the song “You’ll Never Walk Alone” I began to cry. My sweet sister Janet turned to me and asked, “Do you want to leave?” And all I could do was shake my head YES. We left in the middle of the song. Would I ever come back or sing that song again?

But my loving sisters never gave up on me. Along with their love and support,
they knew that singing harmony had gotten us through a lot in our lives. And this
would help me now. So, they just gently told me to give it another try even though Artie thought I was never coming back.

I guess its true that I am a resilient person, because I did go back. And without
fail, Artie always has us sing “You’ll Never Walk Alone”. In time I was able to lift
my voice with my entire sister Belles in singing that and many other songs. It fills
my soul and gives me peace.

But it’s not just the music. It’s being in a group of loving and gifted women who
play by Artie’s Rules:

We ARE Family
We DO have lots of fun! &
We HAVE put out some darn good music!

“YOU’LL NEVER WALK ALONE” written by Rogers & Hammerstein…

When you walk through a storm
Keep your chin up high
And don’t be afraid of the dark.
At the end of the storm
Is a golden sky

And the sweet, silver song of a lark.
Walk on through the wind,
Walk on through the rain,

Though your dreams be tossed and blown.
Walk on; walk on, with hope in your heart,
And you’ll never walk alone!
You’ll never walk alone.

Creamy Lemon Squares

CRUST:
1 & 1/2 cups Graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/4 tsp. salt
LEMON MIXTURE:
14-oz can of sweetened condensed milk
4 egg yolks
3/4 of a cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (4-5 lemons)
1 tablespoon lemon zest

CREAMY TOPPING MIXTURE:
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup icing sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Grated lemon peel

DIRECTIONS:

1. Prepare the 8 x 8 pan. Before you start cooking, preheat the oven to 350
   degrees. Grease an 8×8 baking dish and line it with parchment paper. Place the
   baking paper in the pan, leaving an overhang on two sides; butter paper.
2. Make crust: Using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar and salt until light and
   fluffy. Press dough into the bottom and 1/2 inch up sides of prepared pan; prick all
   over with a fork. Bake until lightly golden, 15 minutes.
3. Make filling: In a large bowl, whisk together yolks, condensed milk, and lemon
   juice until smooth. Pour over hot crust in pan; return to oven, and bake until filling
   is set, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool completely in pan.
4. Refrigerate until filling is firm, about 2 hours or up to 3 days. and dust with
   confectioners’ sugar or beat Creamy Mixture and spread over cake. Cool for an hour. Using paper overhang, lift cake onto a work surface and cut into 16 squares

INSPIRATION: