Am I Just Old Fashioned , Or What ?

I think that I am a pretty "hip" guy for being 60 years old. Go ahead and laugh at that statement, I'm sure that my kids are.
When I was being taught by my parents, it was only good manners to take off your hat when you entered a room. It was only
being polite to offer your seat on the bus to a lady or old man. You said "Yes sir" to a man or "Yes Ma'am" to a lady. I can't help but think that
these actions made us grow up to be people that our parents would be proud of. I can't help but think that those manners made us a better country.

Don't worry, this is not going to be a political blog, though I could do a good one if I wanted. No, this is about how manners and just plain old courtesy
seems to have left it's place in Southern Gospel Music. I have seen it happen more often than not these days, however, last night it happened to us,
so it is very fresh on my mind. You can tell me that I am just an old fogy and that my age is making me too sensitive, but sometimes these things get under my
skin, and last night was one of them.

I am not against doing benefits, and this concert last night was a benefit. To be honest, after having a couple of slow months, it just felt good standing on stage
and singing. They were a great crowd to sing to and really showed their appreciation for our effort. They were a gracious crowd, and I would sing for them in a
heart beat, benefit or not, offering or not. So then what's my beef? Here it is pure and simple. My group sat through the sets of 5 other artists. Some were really good,
and some could use a little more practice. My beef is that fact that all but one singer from all of those groups left after they finished their stand. I want to
thank the gentleman who stayed for the duration of the concert to even hear the last group, us, The Sunday Edition. When all the artists packed up and left,
we had a much smaller crowd to sing to than they did. Oh, I forgot to mention that all of these artists were within driving distance of their homes. Again, this was a great crowd to sing to. They were with us the whole time we sang. I couldn't have asked for a more appreciative audience. Again, back to my beef, My group did the courtesy of staying to listen to all of the other artists perform, and I just consider it good manners to stay and be courteous to the artists who follow you. One group even started tearing down equipment and loading it out of the building while another group was singing. Again, am I just being an old fogy or what?

I understand that sometimes people have to leave concerts, but does everyone from that group need to leave? At least someone could have stayed to represent
thier group. OK, I'm putting on my flame suit now, so I'll be watching for those incoming arrows. So, let's bring back to having some manners in Southern Gospel Music.