The kid's tours went on for nearly fifteen years. They enjoyed themselves on the road, and unlike their oldies, they didn't get tired of it.
With the blessing of their mothers, the Brennan children joined the group about three years in, when Kenny and Maria married, and Tim claimed Stephanie. The family grouping decided to make a family as well, so Bill and Kylie were married shortly after Tim and Stephanie.
As was noted, neither of the twin's marriages worked out, so after their divorces, they were invited and eventually moved back to The Ranch to be with their lifelong friends.
They still spoke a fairly heavy Strine, but by this time, the "Girls" had learned much of it, so they could throw it right back at them. The Ranch was constantly being bombarded with Strine yabber, and it seemed as if there were chinwags underway in all corners of the redwood forest.
Ralph finally sold the deli to a young couple from Oz and, with Ruth, retired to enjoy their girls, grandchildren, and lifelong friends, "These Girls Can Play". They were always a welcome addition to any activities the "Girls" had planned, so the entire Brennan clan was generally present for any shenanigans perpetrated at The Ranch.
All seven of the kids moved away from The Ranch but didn't go far. They continued to make music in the Playground with their oldies. The "Girls" finally stopped putting out new albums regularly but continued writing, giving their songs to the kids or the Brennan's to use.
Each of the couples began having children of their own, and of course, Grandmas and Grandpas got to spoil them ruthlessly. They would hang around at The Ranch while their moms and dads worked in the Playground.
By the age of ten, the Grandchildren were becoming accomplished musicians on their own. It would be interesting to see if they continued in the "family business" someday.
Samantha married one of the roadies that Bill had found to set up her equipment. Their romance blossomed on tour before they ended up at the altar. Like all of the others, their relationship was full of love and caring.
It took Rebecca and Renee a long time to find their chosen loves, but they eventually settled as well.
Janell continued to excel at her photography and won many local awards for her still-life photography, much of it done on long walks around The Ranch. She and Terri attended many craft faires around northern California to sell her photos. Most of the time, one or more of the "Girls" would accompany them and help work the booth. All of the funds from Jan's photos went to Chelly's foundation.
Many times, they signed autographs and copies of their CDs for their many fans. Because of the area surrounding Willits, the people knew that everyone lived there because they wanted some level of anonymity. Though they were recognized, the locals let them live their lives in peace, which was grandly appreciated and rewarded with impromptu free concerts in the park.
Every so often, while attending a faire, the "Girls" and the Brennan's performed for the locals using acoustic instruments. They always dragged Bob along because, as they told him, he was still part of the band. He never fought too strenuously because he knew he'd lose the battle in the end.
Less often, as time went on, the "Girls" would do benefit events for Chelly's foundation, but the kids took over the task and, like their oldies, donated a few concerts every year. It was their honor to perform benefits in the name of the Judy Tejano Breast Cancer Foundation.
The "Girls" finally stopped accompanying the kids on their tours after about five years. The constant traveling reminded them of their own touring and why they had retired in the first place. They would still come to a few chosen shows to close a show with their children.
The kids did the same close their oldies had done so many years before and did it for the same reason. As they explained, it was being done to honor their oldies and the sentiment they expressed with the music. It was the only closing song they ever performed during their entire careers.
They did switch up the opening once in a while. Kylie became a master of the doudouk, and some of the openings were extended because she would play a more extended, impromptu, Kylie version of The Feeling Begins.
As would be expected in a long life, families, and friends went the way that families and friends go when time and lives are passing, but the Playground was never quiet. There was always something going on to keep everyone smiling, laughing, and dancing.
The "Girls" would have a party every year to commemorate the last show in their official touring career.
"These Girls Can Play" always had a memorable party just as they had remarkable careers. There was music, dancing, and carrying on, with three generations of musicians in attendance. Add to that the Brennan sisters and their oldies, who were indeed part of the family, and it was quite a scene.
As you would expect, there were always long acoustic sing fests while everyone sat around the campfire singing songs from the past.
The music always went long into the night, and like their concert finish, they usually ended their parties with the same song.
No, it's not the song that you might think.
Still singing in perfect harmony, five aging musicians would stand together in front of their family and friends singing, It's All Over But The Shouting.
Author's afterword:
As I was going through this tale again, my mind came up with another "Girls" story. Whether or not it ever gets written remains to be seen. Some of it predicated on the visit they all took to Castaway Island and were given the eternal life all visitors receive.
They also moved to the island when the Earth's environment decided to go belly up and needed some time to recover. As with most of my work, I try to intertwine some characters from other stories, so there are characters in this book from other works. There is Tom and Dee from the "Teaching Deanna" series as well as Bob and Sandy from the "Craft Faire Love" series (both of those series contain explicit adult content. The Castaway Island series does not contain adult material.). By the same token, you will find the "Girls" in some of my other works.
Making the trip to the island changed all of their lives immeasurably, but even today, in the year 6257, they still make music in the Playground. It's just that the Playground is not on the Earth. As you can see from the year, the Earth took some time to recover from human abuse, but recover she did because that's what Mother Nature does.
As always, thank you for reading "It's All Over But The Shouting!" If you enjoyed the book, please consider submitting a short review to Amazon.com and Smashwords.com. I would appreciate it very much!
Cheers,
pj 2021