Guess Who Was a Boy With a Guitar
Inspired by Paul Harvey’s The Rest of the Story, Kevin has crafted a captivating series of “guess who” articles, which he’s generously sharing with our readers!
The Boy With the Guitar
That summer, Lonzo Green and his family made the long trip from Cherry Valley, Arkansas, to visit relatives in Tennessee. He was a country musician, not famous by any stretch, but someone who knew his way around a guitar and had a soft spot for teaching others.
His teenage nephew, Jimmy, was thrilled to have him around and couldn’t stop talking about it at school. One day, Jimmy came home with a request. A friend of his—a quiet kid from the other side of town—had a guitar but didn’t know how to tune it. Jimmy wanted to bring him by, just for a minute.
There was a problem, though. The boy wasn’t welcome inside. Jimmy’s parents had made that clear. They didn’t like where the kid came from or the way people talked about his family. It was a different time, but the lines between neighborhoods were sharp, and some doors stayed closed no matter what.
Lonzo didn’t ask questions. Instead, he waited outside that afternoon to meet the boy.
A few minutes later, a slim teenager with dark hair appeared, a beat-up guitar slung across his back with a piece of string. He looked nervous but polite, unsure of himself in a place where he didn’t quite belong.
They sat on the curb together. Lonzo took the guitar, showed him how to tune it, and explained a few basic chords. The boy listened closely, soaking it all in. When the lesson was done, Lonzo played a few songs—simple, heartfelt country tunes. The boy grinned, then asked to try.
They spent the next hour passing the guitar back and forth, sharing music and stories. It didn’t matter where either of them came from in that moment. Lonzo never invited him inside. He didn’t break the house rules. But he made space for the boy where it counted.
Lonzo never saw him again.
Years later, millions of people would.
That shy kid with the secondhand guitar and the polite Southern drawl went on to change music forever. His name was Elvis Presley.
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