The Nevel

We had been sitting in the sauna side by side for about 20 minutes,
me and an old man.

He turned to me with the slow approach a bead of sweat rolls with and asked me where I was from.
I answered, "Country Vic" which is my go to response for city people inquiring.
He seemed amused at this and said he was from Aqaba, Israel.

I told him my folks lived on the Jordan-Israel border just after the 6 day war, which is my go to response for people from Israel.
I tried to think of other things I knew about Israel or Hebrew words or something, but apart from my mother’s name, the only Jewish things I knew about could be eaten and didn't make for much conversation.
My mind ticked around boxes like a country Victorian’s mind in a multicultural city does.

"What do you do boy?"
"Well I write.. and make music.. most of the time I guess"
"Only most of the time? Why?" His generous response rubbed against me soft; unguarded me.
"Well life gets in the way and I feel too worthless to share sometimes to be honest"
'Ahhhh' he rumbled, and we sat there for a little while longer.

"So what are you working on now?" He inquired in a trailing tone, almost as if he was content to just sit in a melody I couldn't hear, but thought he should let me in on it a little longer.
"Well I've been doing some instrumental stuff, hiphop and ambient stuff."
"Ohhhh me too, I play the nevel"
“The nevel?”
“Ahhh its what you’d call a type of harp, its very soothing, If you ever want some nevel on your record, I can provide,” he chuckled away.

I smiled through the steam at him and I told him how it had just been mastered, but next time, yeah why not… the name of it alone was pretty damn fly.

We sat a while longer and then he stood up, started to leave and asked my name.

“Well, it was very nice to meet you Jack Lehmann; you try and fill those valleys with something that fits, ok”