Amazing Grace...

...of a beautiful boy, who once was lost, but now is found...

I think Elliott's send-off will be the most eloquent moment of that show's history. The man is grace, class, humility, and dignity personified. What a moment, one I'll never forget. I started crying during his "homecoming" when I saw his mother slowly taking in the response from the crowd at the stadium - it was poetry. Then it hit me again during his "journey" video as that footage of him being so overwhelmed by just being a part of the show was so moving.

I had prepared myself all day for what I believed was the inevitable, and I believe he and his family did as well. And I had a good cry about it when I got home Wednesday morning and watched the video of the show from Tuesday - there was something so haunting about "Open Arms", I don't know if anybody else picked up on it the way I did. I still hear it in my head right now. He looked and sounded so helpless and vulnerable, I just lost it....

....And I also realized why I was so taken with him on the show, which was so unexpected as I've never been a fan of that show nor will I ever really be, but this unique soul came along and got my attention. The last 12 months have been difficult. A beloved choir I was a member of for four years here in New York was disbanded. Then the one-two punch of the Louisiana hurricanes later that summer was too much to bear. Watching Katrina's decimation of an American city followed by days of its citizens' inhumane suffering while our government stood by was heartbreaking, and swelled up enormous feelings of rage in me. And then four weeks later, my own family suffered at the hands of Rita, which wrought unprecedented destruction on southwest Louisiana. My parents' house was heavily damaged by a sudden and violent storm surge, forcing them to live in their travel trailer for the last seven months while the first floor was completely reconstructed, and my dear grandparents' home was destroyed, forcing them into an assisted-living facility. The remains of their house were finally brought down just last week. Those first two weeks of the aftermath was one of the worst times of my life. My absolute feelings of helplessness because of my inability to get down there led to overwhelming bouts of despair and fear, and made me angry at the whole world.

Then on the evening of March 1, I decided on a whim to see what was going on with "American Idol" and this off-beat looking kid with a toothy grin, sweet and sincere disposition, and beautiful blue eyes stepped forward and sang "Moody's Mood For Love."

And the rest is history.

So it was fitting for him to sing that song tonight, I felt we came full circle, and it was magnificent.

I said several weeks ago, he makes me smile when he sings. And I realized I hadn't really, truly smiled in a long time. And he made me rediscover my own love of singing. And I will always be grateful for that.

We all just needed something nice, something good, and something inspirational to happen. This nation is in a rather precarious state right now. Elliott Yamin filled that void for me.

And, somehow, he just makes me want to try to be a better person.

Rg