Nashville is a pretty small town. When I was a kid, living in Mississippi it seemed like the center of the universe. The thought of moving to such a mecca seemed daunting. But after being here for a while you start to learn I-65 and I-40 and how to get from here to there and you realize that Nashville isn't that overwhelming. And time passes and you learn the music business is even smaller. I guess my family has been here about 10 or 11 years now and over that time you come across a lot of people. Some you remember, most you don't. Two people I do remember seeing around town though, was this brother and sister group from Mississippi called "Ragsdale". They were gorgeous, had these beautiful harmonies and the sister wore these amazing hats! Leah and I would see them around, playing here and there. I don't know them. But I knew who they were. And I always admired that lovely girls hats :) And well, the fact is, we are both from Mississippi and you never forget someone who came from the same place you did!
I have been living in a bubble over the last few months. Kind of my shangri-la I guess making this record. But I was jolted to reality, the reality of just how small we are and how fragile our bodies can be when Leah told me that Joshua Ragsdale has been diagnosed with CML (Leukemia), which, from what I understand is pretty aggressive and he only has a few months to find a match for a bone marrow transplant.
Normally, I would let this go by me. What can I do? But, we can do something to help him. A fellow artist, songwriter. It's free, it's painless. It takes 5 minutes.
Go to www.marrow.org and join the bone marrow registry. They send you a kit, you swab your mouth and send it back. It's that simple.
Here is his facebook page if you would like more information:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=143381280558&ref=mf
There is no donor match for him in the marrow bank as of now.
Sending off for my kit.
With much love and gratitude,
Brandon Jane
