The Mudcat Community is populated most of all with people who are decent. In the thousands of times I have come here looking for lyrics, looking for laughs and looking for a sign of life on the planet, I have never failed to be touched by the fact that the people of the ?Cat are what I can only call ?good people?.

This means a number of things to me,

It means people who are interested in an open exchange of points of view.

It means people who share a love for the magic that happens when they hear singing, and when they sing themselves.

It means people who are generally more willing to be plain and straightforward than they are in need of being fancy, special or egoistical.

It means people who will find the time to help other people for no other reason than it seems like a good thing to do.

It means people who will go out of their way to help others find answers to questions, to share lessons learned, to make each other laugh, to provide comfort and support in hard times, to cheer the wins and celebrate the good times.

It means people who are willing to sit down at their keyboard and put their minds to work on behalf of community.

It often means people who will drive for long distances to share music or provide help.

It means people who will often go out of their way to make an environment that is safe for others.

All these elements are part of what I call the ?decency? of the folks who come here to share songs and swap stories and tell jokes and ponder the tough puzzles of life with each other.

I have seen this quality coming to the fore here over, and over, and over again, even when the temptations to do otherwise were plentiful and blatant.

And I think this is an observation worthy of recording, and perhaps pointing to from time to time when the invitations to lesser forms of conduct come knocking.

This is a truly decent place, and I love it.

A