Live & Local Music Festival.

I've been busy. As in, extremely busy, to the point that I feel the need to schedule moments of food consumption. It has been a stressful few weeks full of uncertainty, but there's no time for dwelling on that aspect. I give up on worrying and trying to predict outcomes. Que sera, sera: I'm just living.

I played my first gig in a year over a week ago. You never realize how strongly you are impacted by something until you let it sit dormant for longer than you planned. A friend of mine was in charge of booking a show, and she needed to fill a 30 minute slot last minute. With less than twenty-four hours notice, I compiled a set list, prayed my guitar strings would hold up, and decided to just roll with it. Short version? It was probably the rawest show of my life. High E string snapped in two while tuning, sound shorted a few times, a couple wrong chords, etc. Considering my guitar was having a mental breakdown, I was so grateful when a fellow performer offered to lend me hers. Despite the unpredictable moments, the night turned out better than I could have expected. I was so touched when a mother and her 3 little girls followed me over to the fountains after my set, and proceeded to tell me how much they loved my songs and the way I sang them. The girls were so adorable as we played in the water and discussed Tinker Belle and school. When their mother told me she was near tears because my voice was beautiful, I almost lost it. I'm still continually amazed at the way music touches people. A huge thank you to Anna Kaelin, Rob Shand, and Whitney Blayne for being awesome. I'm blessed to be able to know and meet such incredibly talented people. Also, to my supportive family and friends: thank you for sitting on uncomfortable cement benches, and being there for me. I love you!

Eventually I will get caught up with everything I need to do, and maybe I'll be better at blogging about it all. I have so many thoughts and experiences to write about, but for now, this will just have to suffice.

{photo credit: M. Townsend}