Saturday, June 21, 2008

The White Rose Guitar

Doyle Dykes is one of the most respected fingerstyle guitarists in the world. My dad and I got to hear him play a few years back in Southern CA before either of us knew who he was. Simply amazing.

Taylor Guitars partnered with Doyle several years ago to create a personalized guitar for Doyle based on his own specifications...the Taylor Doyle Dykes Signature Model Guitar. They began producing Doyle's guitar in "black" and "natural" (colors) for the public shortly after.

Beyond his specific musical, electronic and stylistic requests, the most identifiable feature of Doyle's guitar is the white rose of mother of pearl inlaid in the guitar head. Everywhere Doyle travels, he always plays a song he wrote for his daughter called "White Rose for Heidi". Before playing the song, he tells the following story...

When my oldest daughter, Heidi, was four years old, I asked if she wanted anything special from God. We were saying our bedtime prayers. She replied, "Yes Daddy, there is one thing I've been thinking about." "What is that?" I asked. "A rose," she said. "I'd like God to bring me a rose."

The next day, I'd forgotten about it. That night at prayer time, she again asked, "Daddy, how come God didn't bring my rose today?" I felt bad, as well as bewildered. I was really at a loss for words. Suddenly, I said, "Well, maybe you need to tell Him what color rose you want." She said, "Oh, well I've been thinking about a white one." We then asked God to deliver a white rose for Heidi.

The next night, after a concert a few hours away, a little lady, who apparently was "special," walked up to me after everyone had left. She asked, "Are you Doyle Dykes?" "Yes," I replied. "God told me to bring you something from my garden today." She handed me what I thought to be carrots or some other vegetable from her garden that was wrapped in aluminum foil. "Thank you, I'll enjoy eating this," I said. She giggled like a child and said, "Uh...You'd better open it."

I peeled back the aluminum foil to find a beautiful, solitary "White rose for Heidi
."

A little over a year ago, on the second Sunday of June, my church presented me with a gift of money that they had collected, telling me to buy a new guitar. I've had the same guitar that my parent's bought for me as a Christmas gift about 15 years ago. It's been a solid, wonderful guitar for many years, but has never been something that was well suited for use on stage, especially in our church building playing with our band...in fact, I've been using a borrowed guitar on Sunday mornings for the past year (thanks, Rich!).

My dream has always been to own a Taylor guitar, and the church's gift not only allowed me to buy a Taylor, but to buy one that I would never need or want to replace.

However, partly because I'm lazy, but partly because I knew owning a new Taylor would be as much a curse as a blessing while we lived in Durham (because I would not have been able to play it very much), I put off making the purchase.

All this past year, Tricia has been bugging me about buying the guitar, but I've just been reluctant to do so until we were home again. I shopped quite a bit, looking for exactly what I wanted to buy...I just never bit the bullet. A few months back, after Gwyneth was born, I remembered Doyle and the story he told about his white rose guitar, and mentioned to Tricia how it would be cool to own one of those guitars. We even looked up a few on the internet.

About a month ago, she began telling me about how cool my Father's Day gift was going to be. I couldn't imagine anything better than her Christmas Gift and Birthday Gift for me this past year. But in the back of my mind I thought that maybe she was trying to get my guitar for me, which was a little scary because I knew the specifications I wanted, and I knew that Tricia didn't know much about guitars.

Despite my best efforts, including some intense questioning when she was coming out of sedation the other day (haha), she wouldn't tell me, even when father's day came and went last week. All she would say is that it was the best ever and that it was waiting for me when we got home.

Well, needless to say, Tricia is basically the best wife ever. She found a brand new, natural white rose guitar for an incredible price. She and my mom had it laying open in it's case for me when we got home yesterday, just in time for me to drool for a few minutes before packing it up and taking it to band practice. It is just about the most beautiful guitar in the world, it sounds incredible (especially compared to my old guitar), and it has some very rich and sentimental significance to me (hi, Gwyneth Rose!).

So, without further ado, here are a few pics of my new White Rose Guitar...




I've named her Emma Claire (or, E-Claire, for short).

I have a few more pics of the guitar posted on my Photo Blog. I'll let Tricia post, on her blog, the pics of me actually seeing it for the first time (I'll let you know when she does that).

A HUGE thank you to my Nags Head Church family...I pray that I can use your beautiful gift to continue worshipping God with you for many years to come!

And, here is a video of Doyle himself playing his beautiful song, "White Rose for Heidi".



Thanks!

Nate


67 comments:

Our Family! said...

What a beautiful gift, as well as, a beautiful story! We know that your church will enjoy listening to you play, for years to come! God bless you all!

~ Rob, Amy, Emily, and Ryan Farrell

Jill in Raleigh said...

A truly thoughtful gift to enjoy for a lifetime!

Christina said...

Very beautiful gift and what meaning it will have. Thanks for sharing.

Ellen said...

Very cool! It's such a treat to have a window into your world and to see a Godly marriage in action! Thanks.

Nana2Six said...

Okay, It is only 8:45 in the morning and I am already sitting here crying purple puddles of tears and laughing at the same time! May you and your little 'Emma Claire' continue to make beautiful music together for the Glory of God! You are right, Tricia does get you the best gifts EVER! :)
I know you know it, but you are so blessed to be part of such a wonderful congregation, who invests into the lives of their ministry team! Have an amazing day!
Susan

ditarae said...

That is AMAZING!! Both thoughtful and functional--ha ha! WOW!

My2Girls said...

PERFECT! Simply PERFECT!

Caroline said...

What in incredible gift and a beautiful guitar. I have played Taylors before and they sound soooooooooooooo good. Congrats!

Melody said...

The Dykes are friends of ours. They have such a beautiful talented family. I love to listen to Haley's cd!. Doyle is incredible!.

Enjoy the guitar!!

TheRagan3 said...

how cool! What a great gift from Tricia to you. And to be able to have a reminder of your own White Rose each time you lead your church family in worship... even better!

Amy said...

Oh, that is so awesome. I remember the first time I played a Taylor. It was a 12 string and it had the biggest sound ever and was so easy to play. I'm drooling.
Amy

Be Thou Exalted said...

What a beautiful guitar. My husband would love one of these!

Q's NEWS said...

How cool! What a wonderful Father's Day gift! And here you were worried Tricia didn't know what she was doing - us ladies have a special intuition, dontcha know?

Always in my prayers,
Susan in WV

La Familia Garcia said...

This is such a great story! I bet you'll feel so inspired playing it at church! You are a lucky dad and husband!

Christy said...

WOW!!! That is the most awesome story. Nathan, you deserve to have that guitar. It means a lot to just know that you got it and the significance behind it is amazing. Tricia, girl you got it going on. As if you don't have enough to think of or figure or do. That was an amazing gift. You know,this is what life is about. Living it to the fullest and making each moment count. What a blessing. Of course, Gwyneth is the prettiest white rose ever. Don't you just love God's garden.

Emily said...

What a special gift! You do have a special wife & she has a special husband. I hope that you enjoy your new guitar for many, many years!
Emily

Risa said...

She's a beauty -- but then that sees to run in your family these days! Could we really have expected less? Now how about a video clip of you playing it for your very own white rose :)

Unknown said...

What a beautiful gift!

tillisfam5 said...

That is a beautiful story and what a wonderful gift. So happy for you to be able to express your musical gifts on a beautiful instrument!

Marsmile said...

Neat gift! Wishing you many years of use. It is a beautiful guitar--well, Emma Claire ;-).

Enjoy playin' with it!

Marissa :-)

Rebecca (Ramblings by Reba) said...

Ahhhh... that's so lovely. Enjoy your guitar! :)

Aimee said...

that was a beautiful story. and as i am sure you already know tricia is amazing and so thoughtful =]

Rob and Amy said...

That is amazing. I have chills ontop of chills reading this post, and seeing the pictures!

John and Michelle said...

That is so awesome!!!!! Good job Tricia!

Coralyn said...

Way to go, Tricia! It's a beaut!

marie said...

Beautiful story.

Where did you get Emma Claire from?

E-Claire = good humour?

Good work Tricia!

Angela R. said...

That is a touching story. And what a BEAUTIFUL gift with so much meaning. I think Tricia deserves much credit.. Good going Tricia!!! Play in good health and happy times!

Enjoy!!
-Angela

elizabeth engelhardt creations said...

WAY COOL!!! Congrats on the new guitar!!

Nicole said...

Woo! Good for you, it's beautiful!

00 said...

Too cool!!

Julie said...

What a great gift - and I know from personal experience how absolutely awesome it is to give a "dream guitar" to a husband (I had the opportunity and honor to do it for my husband several years ago).

I'll bet it was a great present for Tricia to be able to do that for you!

Teacher in the middle said...

That is SO awesome! It always makes me feel so special when the ones I love put a lot of thought into gifts for me and it's obvious that Tricia is great at that! Congrats, Nate! Play well and play long!

In Him,
Robin

Julie D. said...

The story brought me to tears. Enjoy your new guitar! You deserve it.

~j~ said...

Wow!!! now you have three girls!!! Nate I am so stoked for you. I can only imagine the excitement you felt when you saw your newest baby.
Yes, your wife rocks that's for sure as that is truly a very meaningful gift.
j

Amanda Martin said...

How sweet! I love it that you named your guitar, I name random stuff too (my oversized chair is named Amelia, my guitar is Bobby, and my car is Tinkerbell)! Love the pictures and the rose in-lay. Perfect, absolutely perfect.

sara said...

The tears are flowing again. Thanks for sharing that story. You deserved the best Father's Day gift in the world this year... and it looks like you got it!

Amber said...

whoa, that is really special! you are blessed with such an amazing wife! ~and i know you know that :)

Rachel said...

It is a beautiful guitar. and a wonderful gift that will allow you to share your gift from God with many others. As for the mother of pearl white rose well that is very cool. My daughter's first names are Rose and Pearl so to bad my hubby doesn't play the guitar as that would be a great one for him also. Enjoy and as always my family is praying for your family. Happy Fathers Day and hugs to all your girls.
Rachel in PA

amy smith said...

whoa! she is indeed a beauty... like all the girls in your life!

twin power mommy ♥ said...

That...is just too cool!
Your wife is awesome!!!!
Hugs to you guys

Christina said...

What a special and meaningful gift! I'm sure you'll make lots of music with it!

Amy said...

What an awesome and thoughtful gift! It'll be hard to outdo that in years to come... she's got her work cut out for her. I bet she was so proud of herself and I cannot wait to see the picture of you seeing the guitar for the first time!

patricksnona said...

Tears here in Chicago too! How special! You two truly are the MOST AWESOMEST couple! May you have many many happy years together, cherish the love you share and never lose faith, what an example you are setting for your beautiful daughter! Bless you to a beautiful family.

suzie said...

Oh wow what a story and what a special gift.

That was a lovely post Nate.

Christy said...

WOW.. Happy Father's Day.. what a great gift!!!!! Tricia, you did great!

Violet said...

how incredibly beautiful.

CulyQFun said...

A beautiful gift!!! Great Job Tricia

kelly ens said...

wow, that is a beautiful guitar. plus some major sentimental attachment. enjoy every moment you get to play it. what a great gift!

Kerren said...

Nate, Tricia and Baby Gwyneth!

I have only just discovered your story this evening.. and for the past few hours I have cried laughed and prayed with your family and through your story.

I live in Johannesburg, South Africa, and am currently 22 weeks pregnant with my second son - reading your story has touched my heart (as I know it has for many others) and one of the most important effects it has had on me is to realise how important my babies are, and how blessed I am to have them in my life. As soon as I stand up from my pc I am going into my toddler's room to just lie with him and listen to him breathing, whilst feeling his brother kicking away inside me.

I will, without doubt, be returning to your blog on a regular basis to see how you are doing.

My best to both the girls, I wish you strength and easy breathing. Nate, I wish you peace and continued blessings - as lucky as you are to have your girls, they are truly blessed to have you in their lives.

May God continue to hold you in his loving arms.

Kerren

marcia said...

What a wonderful gift! Enjoy, Nate, enjoy!

Andy Lawrenson said...

OK. I expect some "Doyle" playing on Sunday morning. Good thing the guitar matches my cajon. :)

Pamela Dawn said...

Hi Nate, Trish and baby Gwynath,I haven't posted much at all- but ayou all are in our paryers daily. The guitar is beautiful- hope to hear it in the morning! We are happy that you all are home and we are praying that Traah can getwaht she needs weekly nearer to home. ;) Blessings to you from the Johnsons, Juan, Pam, Leah, Analyse, Dylan and Jaden.

LindsayS said...

Happy Father's Day Nate! What a beautiful story!

michelle said...

Wow..just wow, your life, your faith, the belief that it will all work out as it should, the beauty of this story and the rose on the guitar - each post humbles me more and more each day. Thank you for sharing so much of your lives with me

Shari said...

Just beautiful! I have never known anyone to actually own one of those guitars, but now I do! Wow! That is so sweet! You have one amazing wife! :)

Deb said...

What an awesome gift! way to go Tricia!!
I saw a baby at out church last night that I hadnt seen in a long time and she looks a lot like Gwyneth- only older. She's super cute! She's got the same chubby little cheeks, and nose and mouth. I sat behind her for a while and the whole time I was just thinking how cute Gwyneth will be in a few more months with a few teeth and a bow in her hair(not that she's not cute now- she really is!)

Football and Fried Rice said...

I love the story - what an heirloom!!

chanceofcrazy said...

One Word....AWESOME!!!

How blessed you are.

Deb@ bird on a wire

Unknown said...

How did she figure out the specs you wanted?

It's such a great father's day gift!

Lisa said...

Thanks for sharing that cool song. Have you ever listened to Stephen Bennett? He's a great guy who plays beautiful guitar and harp guiter. I think you'd like him.

Scott said...

Wow, that was one cool story! Enjoy!

Blankenship Babbles said...

Wow...Your wife is amazing...what a beautiful Father's Day gift...Good Job Tricia...All your girls are beautiful...you are one lucky Boy Nate!!!

terri c said...

Beautiful guitar, beautiful story. It is Sunday and I have been imagining the joy in your church as you play your new guitar. Hoping all continues to go well. Prayers obviously continuing...

Gila said...

What a wild story--got chills reading it!

Ally D said...

I work in a music store and have had the priviledge of hearing Doyle Dykes, he was in my town of Fredericton NB Canada last week. His signature Taylor is truly gorgeous, and such a great connection to your family story.

Good to know your Church will be blessed with music from an amazing gift. Enjoy your treasure!

Unknown said...

What a great gift for a VERY deserving Dad... I'm sure it will be put to good use to share the gift that God has given you.

Emma Claire is my best friend's daughter's name... and she was a micro-preemie too!

Just Me said...

How beautiful!

I love that you named your guitar says the person who is typing from her laptop named Toby.

Incidnetally, Toby's best friend is my mp3 player, Simeon. ;)