Elvis Drinks Moxie

He used to sing in the men's quartet. His earnest eyebrows would rise and fall in time with his Adam's apple. And, his voice, rich and glossy like pulled taffy, brought heaven into the room. No one argued--Dick Parker had a gift.

I haven't seen him in years. And then...

At a Main street fair in Lisbon Falls amid a sea of orange Moxie t-shirts, Dick Parker was Elvis. He took the stage wearing nothing but a glitzy white leisure suit and wedged sideburns to croon to the afternoon crowd. The sunlight caught on his gigantic pinkie ring and the "bling" around his neck shook. He was soft at first, but he gained volume as his hips began to swing. Yes, Dick Parker SWIVELED from the waist down. He was a rockin'robinhounddog sort of guy. Now, THAT is Moxie.

My reaction was a mixture of delight and disbelief. Delight to see him doing something that brought so much fun to the little town. His family and half of Shiloh were there to cheer him on. Disbelief because...well...this was Dick Parker. It was like finding out that your blind date to the prom was your brother.

He performed a set of Elvis songs that used to make young girls swoon. And, then, when I least expected it, he sang "How Great Thou Art." Right there, on the street, in the hot afternoon sun, prickles went up the back of my neck, and I knew I was going to cry. Tears fell over my face faster than I could stop them. I didn't join the chorus although many people did. I stood and listened. Everything faded. The smell of fried dough and onions with peppers. The mechanical elephant at the Safari booth. The call of the vendors. The people.

It was just me and Elvis. And that voice.

Where he had been more timid on other songs, the tone was strong and full with no hesitation:

"O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed."

Who knew that it would take Elvis risen from the dead drinking Moxie to bend my heart close to God?